


President, Prophet, Parent

by typewriterandtea



Category: Battlestar Galactica (2003)
Genre: F/M, Family, Romance, baby!fic of sorts
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-04-18
Updated: 2015-08-11
Packaged: 2018-01-19 20:37:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 19
Words: 79,926
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1483066
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/typewriterandtea/pseuds/typewriterandtea
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>[Originally posted on Fanfiction.Net] Laura Roslin has just been appointed to her second term as President. However, she's about to add one more title to her name. Parent. After the humans escape from New Caprica, and back to the Galactica fleet, Laura discovers a stowaway on Colonial One. Four year old, Pandora, who had found her way on board before Colonial One left New Caprica. Upon discovering that Pandora's parents had been killed by the cylons and their collaborators, Laura takes the child under her wing, deciding that it's her duty to protect the girl. However, it seems Laura isn't the only one intent on protecting the child, as the cylons also seem to have an interest in the girl. Roslin and Adama won't give the girl up without a fight, but what if it could rip the fleet apart?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Exodus Part II

Chapter One | Exodus Part II

Colonial One; it was by no means home, but it was the nearest thing Laura had to one. Even just the appearance of the vessel was enough to calm the woman. Not even the strong stench of cheap whiskey and cigar smoke could get to Laura , this ship was her home, even if Gaius frakking Baltar had taken temporary ownership of it. From simply walking through the central compartment of Colonial One, she could feel a new found sense of confidence growing inside her. Sitting herself down on the plush forest green chair, she felt the weeks and months of constant stress, worry and pain leave her aging shoulders."Alright, I'm ready to go" Laura announced as she unwrapped her precious journal, the only reminder she had taken from 'New Caprica' and placed them on the walnut writing desk. As the ship began to lift itself from the crust of 'New Caprica', forever leaving the pain and misery behind, Laura felt a sense of undying happiness come over her. Yes, they would have to repair both the fleet and themselves after the traumatizing weeks and months they had been through, but everything would be okay now. The fleet would be back together after all.

It was then that a loud crash echoed through the entire room froze. "If that's Baltar, I'll kill him with my own bare hands" It was one of the guards who spoke first, holding his gun at chest height while looking around for the source of the noise., his voice filled with anger and hatred at the pain he had endured under the reign of the President. "Lower your gun" Laura ordered, raising her hand at the guard in question, signaling for him to lower his weapon, as she rose from her seat. As much as she would love nothing more than to throw Baltar out of the nearest airlock, she doubted the man had the balls to stay on the ship. Laura's gentle footsteps echoed through the room, the tension growing with each second, as she walked towards the side storage room. What exactly would they do if it was Baltar in there? "Madame President" She ignored the guards that simultaneously stepped towards her, guns raised. Reaching out for the door handle, Laura wrapped her slender fingers around the cold metal, taking a deep breath before pulling the door open quickly. A small muffled cry, filled with fear and terror, filled the cold dark grey room. That couldn't be Baltar. No, Baltar didn't sound like a young child. Heavy footsteps rushed towards her and once more Laura held out the palm of her hand towards the guards. "Hello?" Laura cooed, attempting to see into the small room, ignoring the claustrophobic feeling that came over her as she stepped inside, pushing the assortment of parchment, folders and empty glass bottles to the side. Reaching out, Laura felt her hand rest on thin silk hair. "It's okay, I promise" Laura bent down as she spoke, moving her hand down to the child's shoulder, unable to see through the darkness. "I won't hurt you. Can you come out of there?" Laura coaxed, wondering how on earth a child - of all people - could have ended up on Colonial One. It was then that she felt two short arms wrap themselves around her shoulder, accompanied by a small head of chocolate brown hair that buried itself into her shoulder. The motion almost knocked the air out of Laura's lungs, but she managed to catch herself before she could lose her balance.

Appearing from the compartment, Laura took in the shocked expressions of her companions. No one knew exactly what they had expected the former president to find, but it certainly hadn't been that. The girl's thin fingers were clutching onto Laura's shirt with such fear that her knuckles were as pale as the first drops of winter's snow. "Madame President?" Tori wasn't exactly sure of what to refer to the woman as, but 'Madam President' seemed most natural. Laura walked back into the office area of Colonial One, both of her arms wrapped protectively around the child that rested against her chest. Stopping in front of the desk, she moved in an attempt to set the child down onto it, at least to allow her a better look at the girl. However, the child in question was having none of it, and simply tightened her grip of Laura's blouse. Deciding that there was no point fighting with the girl, Laura lowered herself down into her seat once more, placing the girl down onto her knee. "What on earth would a child be doing here?" Tori asked, stating the obvious and what everyone else in the room was thinking. "I have no idea" Laura confessed, allowing herself to take a better look at the girl now that she was seated. Even with the child's head buried in against her shoulder, Laura could still make out her ballerina pink cheeks, pale skin and delicate cheekbones, while her thin brunette hair stopped just below her shoulders. "Tori, find me something to wrap her in, she's ice cold" Laura ordered, looking from the group of people and down to the child once more, watching as the child cautiously looked up at her with wide bewildered eyes. As Tori disappeared in search of a blanket, the girl seemed unsure of her surroundings and moved herself closer to Laura, burying her cheek into the woman's soft curls as she felt a group of watching eyes. "Can we have the room please?" Laura requested, looking up at the group of men who had accompanied her and Tori onto Colonial One. She ignored their mutters of protests as they filed out into the back of the ship. As the men left, Tori returned with a soft cotton blanket for the girl, handing it over to Laura before sitting herself down on the seat at the front of the President's walnut desk.

"Pandora" It was the girl herself who broke the silence between the trio, her soft voice was weak and almost broke with just that one simple word. She took a deep breath, filling her lungs before speaking again. "My name's Pandora" She revealed, looking up at Laura with her bambi like eyes as she spoke. "Pandora" Laura breathed the girl's name with a smile, glad that the young girl was beginning to relax. "I'm Laura. Do you know how you got in here Pandora?" She asked the child, watching as the girl's smile changed to confusion before she began to focus, as though trying to search for an answer to Laura's question. "I don't know," Pandora admitted, her eyebrows drawn as she tried to think of how she had ended up in the cold grey room ."You're the first person I remember" The girl concluded as she looked down at the plush elephant in her hands, even something that was meant to bring comfort to the young girl seemed like a foreign object. Laura began to worry then, no one, not even children as young as Pandora simply forgot things. Even if they did perhaps forget a small thing or two, they certainly didn't forget everything!

Pulling her eyes away from the child, she looked up at Tori for a moment, exchanging a concerned look before speaking. "Can you get through too Galactica, tell them I'll be coming on board?" Laura requested, deciding that a visit to Cottle would be essential. After all, it might more than just Pandora's memory that was playing up. "Of course" Tori nodded her head and went off to find the nearest working telephone to contact Galactica, deciding it may be better not to mention the reason for their visit. "Four" Pandora held out four small figures as she looked up at Laura with her bambi like eyes. "You're four?" Laura tried to clarify, getting a self-assured nod from Pandora in response., the child now confident of her answer. At least it seemed that Pandora knew a few basic things, if only her name and age.

Laura Roslin wasn't positive of what reception she had expected to receive when arriving on Galactica, but it hadn't been this. "I may have told them that you needed to immediately see Doctor Cottle" Tori admitted shyly when the pair of them were greeted by a small army of soldiers. Of course, several heads did turn when the former President came stalking through the chaotic halls of Galactica, her arms filled with a young child who was clutching onto her for dear life. Should she have really of expected anything else? Arriving at Sick Bay, Laura quickly asked the guards to wait outside before heading inside, being greeted by Cottle who stopped in his tracks when the unusual pair arrived at his door. "What exactly have you been doing, young lady?" Cottle demanded to know as he pulled the freshly lit cigarette from his thin lips, looking unamused by his latest patients as he walked them over to the nearest cubicle. "Do I want to know?" He asked with a raised eyebrow, watching with slight amusement as Laura attempted to get Pandora onto the bed, with the child protesting my silently tightening her grip on Laura's blouse to the point where Laura herself had to get down onto the bed with a heavy sigh. "I found her on Colonial One, she doesn't exactly seem to remember anything" Laura admitted, watching as Pandora attempted to hide herself from the man before her, choosing to hide her face behind Laura's soft curls, as though using it as a curtain. "Anything?" Cottle asked in surprise, putting his cigarette out as he began to think to himself. Children didn't just forget everything. "Is there any way she could simply have forgotten everything?" Laura wondered aloud, deciding that there had to be some sort of medical explanation for it all. It also didn't help that Pandora seemed to be trying to distance herself from everyone else she came into contact with other than Laura. "The trauma of it all could have resulted in memory loss. Perhaps she witnessed the death of her parents?" Cottle thought aloud, still unsure of what exactly could have caused the unusual memory loss in someone so young. "Let me run some tests" With that, the man relit his cigarette before disappearing off in search of a nurse to preform the necessary tests.

It seemed Cottle sure was taking his time today. It had been at least forty minutes since something had last seem Pandora, and Laura could feel her patience running thin. Resting back against the fluffed pillows, Pandora was simply content to listen to the steady beating of Laura's heart as she rested against the older woman's chest. "They told me you were down here" Laura almost jumped out of her own skin whenever she heard his voice. Bill Adama. Looking up at the man, she was shocked that he had chosen to see her and not stay in the CIC. "I'm guessing the rumor mill is running over time" She joked lightheartedly, watching as Bill's eyes slipped down to the child on her knee. Laura could only imagine the rumors that were running around Galactica, it wasn't every day that the former president could be seen rushing through Galactica with a young child. Not even the Lords of Kobol could imagine some of the rumors. "You could say that" Bill chuckled, having heard several of the muttered conversations around the CIC, he had to admit that it was his curiosity that had brought him down to the Sick Bay; that and his worry for Laura. "Hello" Laura was once against shocked by another voice, this time from the child by her side. So far, Pandora had pulled away from everyone except from Laura, choosing to hide herself behind Laura's hair or against the material of her blouse, but now, she was openly speaking to Bill. "Hello" Bill replied, moving to sit himself down on the plastic chair next to the bed, watching as the child's eyes followed his every move. "I'm Bill, you must be the girl everyone's talking about" He confessed, moving to fold his hands in front of his knees as he looked at the child. "This is Pandora" Laura admitted, moving to push the child's thin hair out of her eyes. "I found her on Colonial One" She continued, watching Bill's eyebrow raise in suspicion. "No one has any idea how she got there. She doesn't even remember anything that happened before I found her" It seemed Bill was also concerned about that detail, children don't just forget things, especially not everything. "What does Cottle think?" Bill asked, thinking of a way to explain the apparent memory loss. "It might be trauma related, the Lords of Kobol only know what she might have gone through down there" Laura felt a shiver run through her spine at the very thought of the torture, pain and misery the innocent child may have suffered at the hands on the cylon occupation. Just another reason to detest the very existence of Gaius frakking Baltar, where was an airlock whenever you needed it? Bill moved to cover his face with the palm of his hand, fearful of exactly what the young girl may have been forced to endure on New Caprica.

"Where did the strange smelling man go?" Pandora asked, looking up from her plush elephant and towards Bill and Laura. It took all of Laura's self control not to laugh at the child's observation, it seemed Pandora also hated the strong stench of cigarette smoke. "Don't let him hear you calling him that" Bill informed the child, finding himself amused by her comment. As though his ears had been burning, Cottle appeared with another cigarette resting between his fingers. "Seems you're a bit of a mystery, missy" Cottle admitted as he put the test results down onto the foot of the bed and took a small blow of his cigarette as he watched the child moved to hide her face in Laura's shoulder. "Did the tests show anything?" Laura asked, wishing that for once the man before her could just get to the point. Sighing heavily the man shook his head as he put out his cigarette. "Frak all" Cottle admitted as he once more looked through the test results. Nothing made sense. There was no head trauma, nor was there any sigh of problems with the brain's basic functions. "Take her back in a week or so if she doesn't start to recall anything else, we'll run some more advanced tests then" Cottle suggested, still puzzled by the child in front of him. It wasn't easy to be a doctor and not be able to give an answer to a mental problem. "I believe they're opening up the nursery to orphaned children to place them with suitable families" The moment the suggest left Cottle's lips, Laura felt Pandora's grip of her blouse tighten as the child began to shake her head desperately. There seemed to be no right way to deal with it all. Pandora's apparent memory loss was a problem, but so was deciding a suitable place for the child too stay; especially with her apparent trust issues. Though Colonial One was no place for a child, was it? However it was Adama who spoke up then, raising himself up from his chair to stand at level height with Cottle. "I somehow don't see that happening, Doc" Bill proclaimed, stating the obvious as Pandora began to relax once more. Cottle nodded his head in response, as though having suspected such an answer in response to his suggestion. It seemed Bill had made Laura's mind up for her.

With that, the doctor took the test results once again and left the cubicle. "I better head back to the CIC and have them arrange a raptor to take you back to Colonial One" Bill thought aloud, having noticed the dark circles under Laura's eyes and her apparent lack of energy. "Thank you" The soft innocent voice filled the cubicle before Laura herself could speak. Pandora smiled up at the man in the stern uniform, Laura appeared to trust him and if he was good enough for Laura, then he was good enough for her too. "Don't worry about it" With that, Bill disappeared through the cotton blue curtains that divided the cubicle from the rest of the sick bay, giving the former President and her young ward some privacy.

The journey from Galactica was a lot more controlled than their arrival. It seemed Adama had put the guards under strict orders to get the pair from sick bay and onto a raptor with as little fuss as possible. By the time Laura and Pandora got back onto Colonial One, Tori was standing waiting for them both at the foot of the walnut writing desk, her face filled with worry and even a touch of sadness. "Tori?" Laura asked, her voice dropping as she saw the expression on her aid's face. "You might want to sit down" The young woman admitted, biting the corner of her thin lips as she contemplated the best way of breaking the news to her companion. Sitting herself down into her chair, Laura watched as Pandora slipped off to the matching sofa in the corner of the room, as though having sensed the tension between the two women."It doesn't look like Maya made it off of New Caprica" Tori confessed after a moment of silence, clutching the slightly crumpled photograph before handing it over to the woman before her. Laura felt her heart skip a beat - or perhaps even two - at Tori's words. How was it even possible? Laura had done everything she could to ensure the pair would get off of New Caprica alive, but it seemed even her best wasn't good enough. "What about the baby?" Laura inquired, praying to the lords of Kobol that perhaps Hera had managed to be saved. Her prays for some form of a mircale were dashed when Tori simply shook her head, taking a shaky breath before speaking once more. "I was there when the two guards left to take them to their ship. I don't know...I let you down, it's all my fault" Tori looked on the verge of a breakdown as she started to stumble over her own words, attempting to find some sort of explanation for the entire ordeal. "No you didn't. It's not your fault, this is bigger than us." Laura attempted to assure the women before her, looking down at the photo of the now deceased woman with a heavy heart before her eyes caught sight of Pandora watching her "This is life" Laura concluded with a heavy sigh.

This was life, and life moved on.


	2. Collaborators

Collaborators

When Laura woke up the following morning, her arm felt as though it was being crushed by a dead weight, trapped underneath it. Bringing her free hand to rest over her mouth, attempting to hide the yawn that escaped her lips, Laura's thick eyelashes fluttered several times as she opened her eyes. The lights almost blinding the former President as she awoke from her slumber. It was only whenever she attempted to push herself up off the makeshift cot that she felt the weight again pressing down against her arm once more.

Pandora.

The child had insisted on staying with her that night, and of course Laura had been more than willing to indulge the child just this once. Deciding that there was no way of getting her arm out from under the girl without waking her, Laura rested her head down against the ivory pillow once more.

She almost jumped out her skin whenever the phone began to ring, its cry shrilling through the room like a fanfare. Reaching across as best she could, Laura managed to pick the phone up mid way through its third ring. "Hello" She greeted, resting the phone between her shoulder and right ear as she lowered herself back down into the cot once more. "I hope I didn't wake you" Bill replied as he sat himself down behind his desk. He could imagine Laura rolling her eyes at such a statement, as time went on, he began to feel that he could read her like an open book. Not that he would tell her that of course. "No, I actually just woke up. Still stuck in bed though" Laura confessed, giving Bill a mental image that he wasn't sure he would be able to shake off for the rest of the day. It seemed Laura caught on as she chuckled softly to herself and shook her head. "Get your mind out of the gutter, Bill. Pandora's trapped my arm under her." She teased, feeling Pandora stirring beside her slowly. Bill shook his head at that, leaning back against his chair and he tried to picture the scene on Colonial One in his head.

A comfortable silence fell over the pair as Laura silently waited for Pandora to wake up from her peaceful sleep. "Has she remembered anything else yet?" He wondered aloud, the concern visible in his voice. Whatever Pandora had been forced to endure on 'New Caprica', it must have been unimaginable if she had forgotten everything that had occurred in her short life because of the trauma of it. "Nothing yet" Laura admitted with a heavy sigh, thinking along the same lines as Bill. Unconsciously, the woman found herself reaching out to push a strand of Pandora's thin hair behind her small ear. It was Bill who broke the comfortable silence between the pair, "You're not in this alone Laura" He reminded her, knowing exactly what Laura was like; strong, independent and self-assured, not the sort of person who asked for help from anyone - not even Bill himself - regardless of the situation. Laura found her pale lips turning up in a smile at his words, remembering how Pandora had reached out for the man the night before. She liked to imagine that even with his problems with his sons, Bill was an extraordinary father. As Pandora lifted her head from Laura's arm in a state of confusion as she woke up, her heavy eyes struggle to stay open as her thick eyelashes felt as though they weighed half a ton. "I'll talk to you later, Bill" Laura spoke softly, wishing she could talk to him for at least a little longer before putting the phone back down once more as Pandora yawned audibly beside her.

"Five more minutes" Pandora pleaded as she moved to bury her forehead between Laura's shoulder and the soft pillow under her head. Laura couldn't help but chuckle to herself at the girl's words before reaching out to touch the girl's flushed cheeks. "We need to go back to Galactica today" Laura coaxed, hoping that the idea of being somewhere other than Colonial One might appeal to the girl, there was only so much of the ship that Laura herself could even take. "I don't have to go and see the smelly man, do I?" Pandora turned her head but kept her eyes shut, deciding that she would rather stay tucked up in bed than go and see the strange man in the white coat. She really did have a way with words. Laura moved to rest her elbow down next to the pillow as she turned herself to face Pandora. "What if I said we could visit Bill?" At the mention of the man's name, Pandora opened one eye and looked up at Laura for a moment, her lips teasingly pulling up in a small smile. "I'm awake!" She announced happily, all but jumping up from the bed, no longer needing those 'five more minutes' as she attempted to climb over Laura to get out of the cot.

Tom Zarek's arrival on Colonial One would ultimately delay their visit to Galactica, much to Pandora's displeasure. When the man appeared in the room, Laura stood to shake his hand, trying to break the tense atmosphere by calling him 'Mr. President' and putting on a firm smile. Pandora moved to step closer to Laura, attempting to hide herself behind the slender woman's legs, keeping herself out of Zarek's view as best she could. "Who's this?" The man asked with a bewildered expression, Laura hadn't mention any sort of child to him on New Caprica, and he was positive that she had boarded 'Colonial One' after it by herself. He was sure that he would have seen a child with her if there had of been one. "This is Pandora" Laura attempted to sound as enthusiastic as possible, but Pandora's behavior around Zarek was worrying her, though she tried to calm her fears by thinking it was simply a 'shy stage' that she was going through.

"Ah, Pandora" Tom Zarek attempted his best dashing smile as he bent down on knee so that he was at eye level with the girl, but the closer he got too Pandora, the closer the girl got to Laura, her arms become deadlocked around Laura's right leg. Her eyes seemed to fill with tears as she bit her lip so hard that it looked as though it was about to start bleeding. Pandora reached up to pull at the woman's skirt slightly, causing Laura to look from Tom to Pandora. "Can we go and see Bill now?" Pandora all but begged, looking as though she was about to start sobbing in fear of the other man as she tried to hide her face behind Laura's thigh. "I'm sorry, Tom" Laura threw the man an apologetic smile as she reached down to pick Pandora up, placing the girl onto her hip and carrying her over to the sofa and picking up the stuffed elephant on the way.

Placing Pandora down onto the sofa, she took the blanket and wrapped it over the child before bending down beside her and handing over the elephant. "Please, Pandora. As soon as I'm done speaking to Tom, we'll go to Galactica and see Bill"Laura promised, hoping to calm Pandora's river of tears before they started to overflow. The girl simply nodded her head, sniffling as she curled her hand into a small fist and wiped away her unshed tears. With a reassuring squeeze of Pandora's hand, Laura moved back over to the perplexed looking man.

Perhaps it would be best not to explain her situation with Pandora.

"So Mr. President, how long until the new quorum of twelve is formed?" Laura began as she sat herself down one the right hand visitor's chair while Tom took the one across from her. Hoping too move the conversation away from Pandora and onto something more topical. "Three days. I will personally put your name down as my vice-president" He sighed, personally relieved to be losing the title of 'President' in the extremely near future. After all, would William Adama really work with him? Even more so given his apparent fondest of Laura Roslin? He could imagine the criticism he would receive for breaking up the 'golden couple'. "Then I will resign with immediate affect and you'll be President again before the day is out" He continued, watching as Laura simply nodded her head while appearing to study him closely.

"You're stepping down without a fight, it means Tom Zerek wants something" Laura concluded, surprised that the man who had helped Baltar's presidential campaign against her was quickly stepping down from power. Their conversation was brief, with Tom casting several bewildered glances over Laura's shoulder at the restless four year old behind her. Where on earth had the girl come out of? Standing up from his seat, Tom reached out to shake Laura's hand and forced a smile. "Good luck, Laura" He said, unsure if he was wishing her luck with her new Presidency or the unfamiliar child that had seemed to come under her care.

As Zarek silently walked out of the room, Laura made her way back over to Pandora once more. "Can we go and see Bill now?" Pandora asked, attempting to pull her best 'puppy dog' eyes as she rested her head down against her stuffed elephant while holding her blanket close against her chest. Shaking her head with a smile, Laura moved to help the girl off the sofa, taking her hand as she guided Pandora to the raptor that had been waiting on them prior to Zarek's visit.

It seemed though that her visit couldn't have been more perfectly timed. No sooner had she boarded Galactica than she was told that Adama wanted to see her in regards to something an 'important issue'. Leaving Pandora with Tori, who had accompanied them as she was heading to Galactica herself, before going into the makeshift conference room.

What had surfaced was not what Laura had expected. When Zarek walked out of the room with his tail between his legs, Laura found herself leaning against one of the metal tables, resting herself on top of it. "Frak" She muttered to herself, lowering her head into her hands as she attempted to wrap her head around everything that had just surfaced. "Did you have any idea about this?" She quizzed the man in front of her as she ran her fingers through her soft curls. "Lee told me that people were going missing - but I had no idea about this" He confessed, moving to take a step closer to the slightly distressed woman. "The press will have a field day with this" Bill thought aloud, suspecting that Laura would be plagued for weeks - if not months - by the press about these 'juries' and their 'sentencing'. Though he wouldn't admit to Laura that he did agree with Zarek on one point; Laura's second term should not be spent as 'executor in chief', if nothing else, he wouldn't allow that too happen to her.

The door creaked open, followed by Pandora's head appearing through the small gap as she looked apprehensively around the room before her eyes landed on the two adults in the right hand corner of the room. "Bill!" The child all but screeched, acting as though it had been a short lifetime since she had last seen the man. Appearing out from the door in record speed, she moved to hug Bill as best she could. Though given the extreme height difference, this resulted in her simply wrapping her arms tightly around the man's legs, just above his knees. "It's good to see you too, Pandy" Adama couldn't keep a serious face for all the money in the world. He attempted not to think of what his sons were like when they were that age; had he even been around for most of their early years? Bending down, he moved to pick the child up and set her onto the table beside Laura.

"That strange man was here too!" Pandora hissed, as though informing the two adults of the universe's greatest secrets. "Oh, Pandora"Laura sighed, deciding that people were not her strong point. First Cottle, now Zarek. She decided it would be best not to allow the child anywhere near Gaius frakking Baltar if he ever showed his sly face again. "At least he don't smell bad..well, not too bad." The child thought aloud innocently as she swung her legs backwards and forwards. "She does have a way with words, doesn't she?" Adama watched as the child simply nodded fiercely at his comments on his observation of the child. "Don't I know it?" Laura found herself smiling as Pandora pulled a joking smile as she leaned in against the older woman's arms, wrapping her hand around Laura's elbow as she did so.

Once again, the door creaked open, the visitor cautious of just what sort of scene she could be walking in on. However, when the trio came into view, she stepped forward and allowed the door to close behind her. "Madame President, there's a call for you" Tori revealed, feeling as though they were already being thrown back into their pre-New Caprica roles before Laura was even officially made President for her second term.

"I hate too have to ask but could you...?"Laura turned to look at Bill with pleading eyes, knowing that she couldn't - and wouldn't - trust anyone else with the young girl. Pandora herself didn't seem to trust anyone other than the two of them, and that included even Tori. "Don't worry about it" Bill insisted as he moved to pick the girl up from the table and began carrying her out of the room. "Would you like too meet your Uncle Tigh?" He joked, expecting that Laura rolled her eyes to Tigh's new title, already knowing what the stubborn man would think of such a nickname. It did seem strange to see Bill with a child, but there was something about seeing him with Pandora; it was as though they were pieces of a puzzle that fitted together. Perhaps that explained why he was the only other person that Pandora trusted?

Tori cleared her throat in an attempt to get the older woman's attention. "Right, yes, this telephone call" Laura recalled as she headed out of the room in the opposite direction to the man and child as they disappeared into the CIC. It seemed the rumors were about to get more fire to their flames.

"With every fiber of my being" Laura repeated, finding the corners of her lips turning up in a smile as she finished. Oh, how very different this inauguration was too the last one.

"Congratulations, Madame President"With that, the man reached out to shake the newly appointed President's hand before stepping back.

Pandora moved to clap her small hands together before realising that no one else was doing so. Pushing herself back in the chair, her feet high above the floor, allowing her to swing her legs backwards and forward absentmindedly. Originally, she had been seated between Bill and Zarek, but almost as soon as the latter had sat down beside her, she had all but got onto Bill's seat, resulting in the man swapping seats with her, leaving the child content at the side of the aisle. It did help that it also separated her from the press a little more, something Laura had worried about. Until they figured out what exactly was happening with Pandora's memory loss, Laura was content with not having to speak directly with the press about her new charge or ward.

"Thank you all for once again entrusting me with this high office of civil service, today is a new beginning for all of us. We share a unique destiny, our future is ours to shape but our past cannot be forgotten. A new day requires new thinking; and while I had intended on using this occasion as an opportunity to announce the formation of a new prosecuting office charged with the responsibility of investigating acts of collaboration with the enemy, I have decided that instead a different gesture is called on this, the first day of my next term as your president. We all feel the need for justice and we all feel the need for vengeance and telling the difference between the two can be difficult at time. We are all victims of the cylons and none of us can be impartial, I certainly can't. So today I am forming a commission on truth and reconciliation to hear our stories and record them for prosperity there will be no prosecutions. I am issuing a general pardon for every human in this fleet. This will not be a popular move today but I truly believe this is the only way for us to move forward in strength, in a spirit of healing and reconciliation. I thank you for your continued patience and courage. Good day"Never had Laura Roslin been more relieved to get a speech finished that she was at that moment.

A tense silence filled the room then before Adama moved to stand up from his seat; slowly but fiercely clapping his hands together in his remarkable way until everyone else joined in. It was then that Pandora all but jumped to her feet, clapping as loudly and as quickly as her small hands could manage as she beamed up at the woman at the podium. While Pandora didn't exactly understand it all, she did know that Laura was something called a 'President' and that today was important too her.

Laura flashed a grateful smile at Bill. It seemed every time she received a standing ovation or claps for her speeches, he was responsible for them, usually the one starting such sessions. Her next term wouldn't be easy - and it would no doubt be interesting and eventful - but she was sure of one thing.

They would Earth, and they would find it together.


	3. Torn

It turned out that Pandora's favourite word was 'Why?'. Much like Laura herself, it seemed that the child had a love for knowledge, wanting to know every tiny detail. "Why do we have ra..raptors?"Pandora wondered aloud, struggling to understand the strange vessels. Her curiosity came out as she tried to see as much of the interior of the raptor as she possible could from her seated position in the back with Laura. "They're called a raptor" Laura corrected before stopping a moment later, how exactly was she going to explain it all too someone as young as Pandora? "How about you ask Bill when we see him?"She suggested, knowing that by the time they found Bill that Pandora would have forgotten all about her curious question; or at least she hoped.

As the pair headed through the hallways of Galactica, Pandora clutched onto Laura's hand; both excited too see Bill and cautious about the watching eyes that seemed too follow them around every corner and down every corridor. "Why is everyone looking?" Pandora asked, looking up at the woman with a confused expression. Frankly, Laura had been avoiding listening to the rumors and whispers that floated around the fleet; the press weren't helping either, all asking for a comment about the young child who had seemed to come under her care. "Just ignore them" She suggested, giving the girl's hand a small squeeze as they arrived at their destination.

Baltar's laboratory seemed to have been left untouched since their settlement on New Caprica. If it wasn't for the fact that the room held important information and artifacts relating to their search for earth, then Laura thought that she might have ripped the entire room apart to get back at the man, leaving all his precious research in shreds.

Stepping further into the room, she felt as though its very presence was a constant reminder of Baltar's existence. That alone motivated Laura to find Earth. "You can't let him get too you, Laura" Bill announced as he stepped into the room, softly shutting the door behind him before heading over to the pair. That was one thing that was easier said than done. Baltar had ruined their lives, and the lives of each and every soul in the fleet.

"He's not even here and he can still get too me" Laura thought aloud with a heavy sigh. Why did Baltar seem to have this control over her? Too be able to make her blood boil over and send her blood pressure sky rocketing. All she needed was to throw him out of an airlock and be done with him. A woman could dream... "If I had never let him win the Presidency," Laura started, remembering the countless nights that she had laid awake, imaging just how different things would be if she had of won the Presidency. The fleet would never have settled on 'New Caprica', the clyon occupation would have been nothing more than a tragic nightmare and countless hundreds and thousands of innocent people wouldn't have had too suffer painful and untimely deaths.

It was Bill who spoke then, stopping Laura from continuing her path of depression. "Everything happens for a reason, Laura" Bill reminded her, after all, if Baltar had never been President, then Laura would never have found Pandora. There was countless other happy events that wouldn't have happened. Sitting herself down on the cold grey stool, Laura glanced over at the child beside her, who simply was looking absentmindedly at the paper map that covered the entire desk, marked with scribbled notes and circles that seemed to make sense only to Gaius Baltar.

As the door creaked open, the trio looked up as Felix Gaeta walked inside. He seemed like a cat that was spooked by the blinding headlights of an oncoming car. After all, Laura was almost certain that Gaeta would have heard his fair share of the rumors that were no doubt floating around Galactica like wildfire. While Laura wasn't aware of any herself, Tori had informed her that several were rather hilarious scenarios. Perhaps the next time she needed cheering up, she would allow Tori too tell her some.

"Admiral, Madame President" Gaeta nodded his head as a sign of respect at the two most senior members of the fleet before his eyes casted down onto the child sitting between them. The infamous Pandora, the child at the centre of the storm of rumors and whispers going around the CIC. Just who was she?

Pandora felt the man's eyes on her and found herself reaching out for Bill, her hand coming to rest on his arm as she pushed her face against his elbow in an attempt to hide herself from the man's constant watch. Sensing Pandora's discomfort, Laura moved around to the other end of the table, looking down at the overly highlighted and pen marked map. "Can you make any sense of this?" Laura asked, attempting herself too make heads or tails of the map spread out on the cold metal table before them. "Baltar seemed too have his own way with things" Gaeta admitted, the pair continuing to converse as Bill returned his attention too Pandora.

"Pandy.." He started, his arm wrapped around the girl's thin shoulder as he looked down with a wholehearted smile. "What's the matter?" He asked, having noticed himself that Pandora seemed outspoken and joyful around them, but shy and guarded around anyone else. Pandora seemed to bite her lip then, glancing down at the floor, acting as though she was suddenly interested in a circular spot.

She stumbled for a moment before speaking. "Not safe. I don't feel safe" The young child suddenly seemed older than her years as she cautiously raised her eyes from the floor and at the man beside her, who had suddenly become her protector, defender and guardian. With Bill - and Laura as well - Pandora felt safe. As though no one in the universe could harm even the finest hair on her pretty little head. No one.

As Laura and Gaeta finished speaking, with the latter taking a copy of the map and leaving the room, Pandora seemed too relax almost instantly when left alone in the company of Bill and Laura. A comfort silence fell over the trio as Laura sat herself down on the cold metal seat next to Pandora. Bill decided that now was certainly not the right time too voice his concerns too Laura; he would wait until Pandora was preoccupied before raising them too her. Perhaps he was over reacting?

It seemed that as Kara was slipping further and further from him, Pandora was instantly filling the 'daughter' void that Kara left behind. He and Caroline had always wanted a third child, even more so a daughter, but by the time Zak was born, their relationship was already strained beyond breaking point and Bill had been prepared too allow another child to grow up in their broken household. "Uncle Tigh?" Pandora's soft voice seemed too echo around the room, pulling both adults out of their deep thoughts and forcing their attention on her. "Is he in that place again?" She turned to look at Bill then, expecting him too have the answer to her question.

Laura took her glasses off then, bringing her thumb and first finger to touch the bridge of her nose. She and Pandora passed the pilots' recreation room each time that they boarded Galactica, and upon hearing the familiar voice of her 'Uncle Tigh', Pandora had went in search of the man, expecting too find Bill with him. Of course, what both Pandora and Laura had found was what neither had expected. Tigh was drunk off his face, hardly able too walk even a step. Even worse, Kara wasn't far behind him. Part of Laura had wanted to go inside and knock some much needed common sense into the pair, reminding them that Bill would have their heads for that, while the other half wanted too protect Pandora from the sort of behavior that both Tigh and Kara were infamously known too take during their drinking sessions. Anyone would have thought the pair were father and daughter; with too many similarities to go unnoticed.

"What place?" Bill's confused voice surprised Laura. So he didn't know? Though she thought that perhaps he was starting to ignore the whispers going around the CIC, after all, the three of them were a focus point of at least half of such rumors. "Rec room. Is Uncle Tigh sick?" This time, Pandora directed the section half of her statement at Laura, leaving the President with two pairs of bewildered eyes starring at her for answers. "No, Pandy" Laura said, shaking her head while attempting to comfort the child as she stroked her thin hair. "He just isn't in a good place right now" She tried not too give a direct answer, cautious of Bill's clear confusion over the matter. How did he not know that Tigh was falling into a spiral of depression and drink? Was Bill being oblivious too it all?

Standing up from the stool, Laura held out her hand for the child beside her. "We need too head back" She informed the child, cautious of arriving late for the first quorum of twelve meeting, the last thing she needed was that starting off on a bumpy road. Pandora's face dropped a little then, clutching onto her plush grey elephant as she slipped off the tall stool, her feet hitting the floor as she reached out too take Laura's waiting hand.

As the trio arrived at the door, Laura turned to face the Admiral once more, a concerned expression masked her face. "Bill" She started, knowing that he might not take his newly discovered information about Tigh in the best of manners. After all, Laura could read him like an open book. "Hear Tigh and Kara out" She guided, reaching out to give the man's upper arm a small reassuring squeeze. If anyone could turn the pair around and make them see sense, it was William Adama. Laura had every faith in him too do so.

It was while watching the older couple's interaction that Pandora remembered the question that had been rattling her brain for most of the morning."Bill" The four year old spoke, beaming up at the man beside her happily. "Why do we have raptors?"The child curiously asked, leaving Laura with a bemused smirk as she watched Bill attempt to form an answer. For once, the great William Adama was speechless. In one swift move, the Admiral moved too bend down so that he was at eye level with the girl. "I'll make you a deal." He began, watching as the child's eyes seemed too glimmer with interest and curiosity. She reminded him so very much of Laura when she did that. "If you can talk Laura into having you both join me for dinner tomorrow, I'll take you into one of our raptors or even a viper" Bill bargained, watching as the child's eyes widened before she launched herself at him, wrapping her small arms around his neck, clasping her hands together behind his neck.

"Thank you, Bill!" Pandora said, her cheerful voice lightened the tense atmosphere around Galactica. Releasing Bill from her hold, she moved to take Laura's hand once more, watching as the older woman simply narrowed her eyes and playfully shook her head at the man that still stood crunched down in front of them both. "We will see" Laura admitted, though suspecting that the rest of that day and the following morning would be spent attempting too battle with Pandora's consistent pleads and her best attempts 'puppy dog eyes' before Laura would eventually give in.

As the trio parted way, Bill found himself glancing over his shoulder as he headed down the opposite side of the hallway, watching protectively as the pair turned the corner and headed towards their raptor.


	4. A Measure of Salvation

There never seemed too be a dull moment in Laura's life.

No sooner had she began to settle into her second term as President, than an outbreak of a mysterious illness hits a cylon baseship with several dozen Galactica crew possibly contaminated. It seemed Pandora was unwillingly seeing more of the Galactica daycare than Colonial One these days. It had only taken a simple promise of seeing Bill later that coaxed Pandora into going to the daycare. On the journey towards the Admiral's quarters, Laura turned to look at Tori.

"It's typical isn't it? The one day I have little too do, and the cylons decide to cause more chaos" Laura said, sighing with exhaustion, rolling her eyes to the highest heavens as she headed down the busy hallways of Galactica. She had hoped for at least an hour or two to catch up on the sleep that she had been deprived of on New Caprica; now she wanted nothing more than to sleep in her cot on Colonial One as if she didn't have a care in the world. A girl could dream.

"That's always the way, Madame President" Tori replied, nodding her head at the woman as they arrived at the door of the Admiral's quarters. Turning on her heel, Laura moved to face her younger assistant once more"Check on Pandora for me, if you get a chance" She requested, knowing that the girl wasn't comfortable around other children - or even adults for that matter. The last time she had left Pandora in the daycare, Laura had returned to find the girl sitting alone clutching her elephant in one arm and her blanket in another as she sat herself against the very corner of the stone gray wall of the daycare. "Of course" Tori said, watching as the President helped herself into the Admiral's quarters before she herself headed back down the hallway.

It seemed Laura was the last to arrive at the meeting. Sitting herself down on the low armchair, she listened as Lee, Bill, Cottle and Helo spoke about the possibility of a vaccination. She hated to admit it, but she agreed with Lee. Why should they give the cylons a vaccine? Would they have done the same if the roles were reversed? She doubted it. They were their immortal enemy; who killed countless hundreds of millions of human beings for no apparent reason and continued to chase what little remained of the species. It wouldn't be genocide; it would be a punishment. A justifiable punishment brought on as a result of the unforgivable crimes that the cylons had committed against the human race. Would their death not be justice? Justice for the billions of lives lost at their hands?

However, the idea of using the vaccination as bait to gather information from the prisoners seemed like a more helpful option. After all, they had to find out exactly how the cylons seemed to always be one step ahead of them on the pathway to Earth. Finding Earth was more important than punishing the cylons; at that moment anyway. When the group ultimately came to the decision of providing a vaccination, Laura had decided that it was the most functional way of them retrieving information from the cylons.

Laura stayed in her seat as Lee and Helo left the room in deep conversation with Cottle. "Come on" Bill announced as he lifted himself up from his own seat, looking down at Laura as he spoke. While Bill had the fortune of not having experienced the horrors of New Caprica, he could imagine the pain that Laura had went through at the hands of the cylons. How she had seen the untold pain and misery that the creatures had handed down to the unfortunate souls on New Caprica. Laura had ever reason to not want to give the cylons the vaccination, but it showed her desperate need to find Earth. To be the prophet who led the way to Earth. Their new home.

Raising herself from her seat, Laura fixed the creases in her skirt before following the Admiral out of his quarters. The pair walked down the hallway in silence, both deep in their own thoughts. It was Laura who spoke first, breaking the comfortable silence. "I'm worried about Pandora" She admitted, folding her arms over as she walked in step with the man beside her. As a former teacher, Laura had her fair share of experience with young children, but it was unusual for someone so young to have what appeared to be social anxiety. "She doesn't trust anyone - except the two of us of course - and the only reason I managed to get her to the day care was because I promised I'd take her to see you after" Laura confessed, her hand coming to brush the back of her neck as she took a deep breath, shutting her eyes for a short moment. Pandora's behavior was not just some 'shy stage' that the girl was going through, and Cottle couldn't find any reasonable explanation for her behavior; no trauma, no apparent injuries and a full bill of health.

"Would you really want to know if she had went through some sort of trauma?" Bill asked, knowing that he himself wouldn't have been able to take such news. Even just the idea of something happening to Pandora was enough to make his blood boil. If faced with the realisation that such horror had actually happened to his Pandy, he wasn't sure exactly what he would do.

Laura's eyes dropped to the floor then, something Bill noted that Pandora herself often did. The pair came to a stop just outside of the day care when Laura answered his lingering question. "No. I don't think I could handle it" She admitted, praying to the Lords of Kobol that there was some other reasonable explanation for Pandora's behavior and her apparent memory loss that didn't involve some form of terrible trauma.

"Laura! Bill!" Pandora's joyful cry broke Laura and Bill's conversation as she dashed towards them both, coming to a stop as she wrapped her arms around Bill's legs. In that moment, Laura couldn't imagine the girl as anything else other than a happy, healthy and hopeful child. She couldn't hide the beaming smile that found its way to her thin lips as Bill bent down to scoop the child up as though she was as light as a feather. "Hello Pandy" Bill said, greeting the girl before moving to guide the way down the hallway. By now, it seemed that most of the Galactica crew had gotten used to seeing the trio together and no longer gaped at them as though they were the center piece of a circus act.

As they walked, Pandora wrapped one arm around Bill's neck, resting her head down on his shoulder as she used her other arm to clutch her precious elephant and blanket to her chest. "How was daycare?" Laura asked cautiously, hoping that Pandora had perhaps played with some of the other children. Instead the girl uncharacteristically shook her head and cuddled into Bill's hold, clearly not wanting to talk about it. Again, Laura's eyes diverted to the floor. As curious as she was to find out what had happened to Pandora, Bill was right, the truth could be hard for both of them too face. Perhaps it was better being left in the unknown?

"Dinner?" Pandora asked, looking up at Bill with pleading eyes, hoping that the man had remembered his promise of dinner and a tour of a viper. "I would never dream of forgetting about dinner" Bill said, pretending to be insult at the accusation that he had forgotten about it. His words seemed to calm Pandora, who visibly relaxed at the confirmation that he would in fact be keeping his promise. "She did nothing but talk about dinner this morning" Laura admitted, thinking that Pandora would have exhausted herself eventually after asking every five minutes about how soon it was until dinner.

As they arrived in the hanger deck, Bill spotted the raptor that stood center stage. "Hello"Laura greeted the unfamiliar pilot, no doubt a new recruit, as they arrived at the heavy metal door of the raptor. As Laura stepped up and into the compartment, she put her arms out to take Pandora from Bill. It was only then that the child realised they were about to be separated again. "Bill come too?" Pandora asked, wrapping her arms around Laura's neck as she looked down at Bill as she gripped Laura's blush pink blouse. Looking up at the pair who stood with matching pleading eyes, Bill knew he would never be able to willingly disappoint either of them. There was no harm in leaving Galactica for an hour or so, after all, he and Laura had to work on a strategy on how best to use the vaccine. Cottle had the prisoners under control and it had been confirmed that Lee and the others had not been contaminated by the disease. For once, it seemed they held all the pieces in this constant game of chess.

Stepping up onto the raptor, Bill sat himself down onto the seat nearest the cold grey door as it shut behind him. As she sat in the metal seat beside him, Laura lifted her hand from Pandora's lap and reached out to gently brush her fingers against Bill's closed hands, watching as opened his larger hand to take ahold of hers as he brushed his thumb across her pale knuckles. Pandora turned herself slightly on Laura's knee so that she could rest her head down against the woman's chest while being able to look up at Bill. For the first time since their rescue from New Caprica, Laura felt relaxed, content and at peace. As though she would one day be able to put the horrors of New Caprica too a distant part of her memory.

They were no sooner on board Colonial One before Tori appeared and announced that Lee and Helo had an urgent matter of business to discuss. "You never get a minute to stop" Bill thought aloud, seeing the stress that was building up in Laura. Being a President couldn't be easy. Being an apparent prophet who would guide the people to Earth couldn't be easy. Suddenly being thrust into the role of mother for an abandoned four year old couldn't be easy. Though somehow, Laura seemed to take it all in her stride. "I would rather be kept busy" Laura confessed, if she had time to stop and think then her mind would simply dwell on the past; New Caprica, her apparent role as the 'dying leader' and Gaius frakking Baltar. Three things that had deprived her of sleep more times than she would care too admit.

As Lee and Helo boarded Colonial One, Laura left Pandora on the structure tan sofa with her elephant and cotton blanket, promising that Lee and Helo wouldn't be there for too long.

Lee's plan had been an interesting one, in fact, Laura wasn't sure how she hadn't come up with it herself. If the virus hit the resurrection ship, then the species would be wiped out for good. Their threat forever gone. When Helo mentioned his daughter however, Laura felt a sting of guilt in her heart. She could only imagine his pain and his loss. How would she cope if someone took Pandora from her? In the same way she had taken Hera from Helo and Athena. However, when he attempted to argue that the cylons had attempt to live with them in New Caprica, that guilt quickly disappeared as though it had never been there.

Taking her glasses off and resting her thumb and index figure against the bridge of her nose, she sighed deeply"Pandora's been awfully quiet" Laura said, concern in her voice as she turned around to look down at the sofa. That explained it. Curled up against the arm of the chair was Pandora, her head lay on the armrest while the rest of her body was curled up in a small ball. Deciding it would be best to wake the girl, after all if she slept much longer she would be up half the night. Bending down at the foot of the sofa, Laura reached out to gently stroke Pandora's thin hair. The child's thick eyelashes fluttered for a moment before she reached out to scoop her arms around her beloved plush elephant, holding it tightly against her chest. "Five more minutes"Pandora said, her eyes still shut as she yawned once more, having no intention of leaving the comfortable position she had found herself in.

Having been watching the pair with a content smile, Bill made his presence known once more to the young girl. "I guess we won't be taking a tour of the viper then" He sighed, crossing his ankles as he sat against Laura's desk, looking down at the child who slowly opened her eyes to stare at him. "I'm awake" Pandora announced, all but falling over herself in an attempt to get off the sofa and over to Bill as quickly as possible. Bill allowed the child to take ahold of his hand with her small one, with her clasping onto it for dear life before Pandora reached over and took ahold of Laura's, attempting to drag the adults with her through Colonial One and towards the waiting raptor.

Dinner seemed to be the last thing on Pandora's mind. When safely locked away in Bill's private quarters, Pandora seemed as bubbly as ever. It was a battle to get her to even sit still at the table while Bill came back with the food. "What do you say, Pandora?" Laura reminded the child as she sat down across from her as Bill put the plates down in front of them. "Thank you, Bill" Pandora said proudly, smiling up at the man as she did so. Bill chuckled to himself a little while shaking his head, trust Laura to quickly put manners into Pandora. "The pleasure is all mine" Bill assured as he took his seat at the head of the table between Laura and Pandora.

As Laura lifted her cutlery and began to eat, Pandora tried her best to mimic Laura's actions but failed miserably. Reaching out, Bill took a hold of Pandora's knife and fork, moving to silently cut the girl's food before taking her hand and readjusting the cold fork in her small hand. A picture really could say a thousand word. Laura admired the scene in front of her with a lighthearted smile. It was moments like this that assured her that Bill had no doubt been a dotting father to Lee and Zak, even when he was so often away from home. Everyone deserved a second chance; perhaps Pandora was Bill's second chance at fatherhood?

The dinner table quickly filled with conversation, which drowned out the sound of metal cutlery clicking against the dinner plates. "I met Lee" Pandora announced midway through the dinner, the corners of her mouth rising as she smiled at Bill. "He looks like you" She giggled as she spoke, setting her fork down onto her plate. "Poor Lee then" Laura teased, watching as Bill tried his best to act insulted, putting down his cutlery in mock shock as he rested his elbow on the table and leaned closer to Laura. "Yes, for having too get stuck with my handsome looks" Bill fought back, keeping his eyes dead set on Laura's as he spoke. "Now that is debatable" Laura replied, leaning closer as she rested her arms flat on the table, her eyes narrowing as she looked at him, moving closer.

However, the moment was ended prematurely as the door creaked open. "Bill" Saul stopped dead in his tracks as he inspected the scene in front of him. Laura and Bill leaned only inches apart from each other's faces, gazing into the others eyes as Pandora sat with eyes wide open. He suddenly felt like an outsider to the little world that the trio seemed to have created for themselves. "Uncle Saul!" Pandora cried happily, moving to wave her pale hand at the man. The adults pulled their eyes away from each other too gaze at the man who looked like a cat caught in the blinding headlights of a car. Laura could only imagine what the scene must have looked like.

"Saul" It was Bill who spoke first, standing up from the table as Saul took a small step back. "I'll speak to you later Bill" The man said, looking from his long term friend to the child at the table. "Goodnight, kid" Saul nodded his head before exiting the room quickly, leaving the trio alone once more. "What's wrong with Uncle Saul?" Pandora asked, concern and fear evident in her voice as she gazed at Laura and Bill with worried eyes. "He's just not feeling great the minute" Laura said, hoping to calm Pandora's fears by sugar coating the truth. Reaching out, she took ahold of the girl's hand and gave it a small squeeze. "Maybe I should draw him a picture!" The child exclaimed, as the lightbulb went on in her head. That would certainly cheer Saul up, wouldn't it?

Bill couldn't help but notice how quick Pandora was to worry about Saul; just as he imagined Laura would have in the same position. What shocked him most was that the pair weren't actually related, especially with the stark similarities between the pairs. Although, he remembered reading how adoptive children could quickly pick up the traits of their adoptive parents. Perhaps that explained it all? "How about some chocolate?" Bill suggested, disappearing into his study before returning with two sealed bars of chocolate. Handing them both to Laura, he watched as the older woman opened one of the bars before splitting it in half, handing one half over to the impatiently waiting Pandora. "Half of it now and you can have the other half later" She assured the child, who took small pieces of her chocolate bar before standing up on her chair, putting her arms out for Bill who moved to pick her up and place her on his knee.

"Viper?" Pandora begged, hoping that the man hadn't forgotten about the second half of his promise. Looking down at his battered black leather watch, Bill nodded his head. "You'll have to ask Laura first" Bill compromised, suddenly feeling that the father who constantly told his child to ask their mother about things. "Can I? Can I? Can I?" Pandora begged, all but jumping up and down on Bill's knee as she folded her hands together. Laura sighed to herself then, could she really deny Pandora anything? "Okay" She agreed, watching as Pandora slipped from Bill's knee and began skipping towards the door, giggling to herself as she went along. Bill was quick too follow her though, the pair disappearing out the door and towards the hanger deck.

Laura trailed behind the pair, deep in thought as she walked through Galactica. By the time she arrived in the hanger deck, both Bill and Pandora were already in the viper. Pandora sat on top of Bill's knees, attempting to work the controls as Bill moved her from left to right as though she was really flying the viper. The sound of Pandora's carefree laughter - and Bill's occasional joining in - felt like music to Laura's ears. If only she had a camera. Walking up towards the viper, she listened as Bill attempted to explain each of the controls to Pandora, watching as she mimicked his actions. Had Bill taught Lee and Zak how to work a viper?

"We have a mini viper pilot on our hands" Bill announced, not even noticing his use of the inclusive pronoun 'our' as he beamed down at Pandora, his arms wrapped protectively around the child's waist. Laura watched the pair as she walked up the steps to the open top of the viper, seating herself on the top step nearest Pandora and Bill. No doubt Bill had just caused a lifetime obsession for Pandora. Though Laura prayed that by the time they found Earth, Pandora would never have to experience the chaos of flying a real viper plane. She knew that Bill worried enough about Kara and Lee when the flew, the last thing he needed was to one day add Pandora too that list.

Pandora turned around to look at Laura then. "Like Kara and Lee!" She thought aloud happily, playing away with the various buttons and controls in the cockpit of the viper as though it was the most natural thing in the world. "She's a natural" Laura admitted, catching Bill's eyes for a moment, the corner of her lips turning up in a smile before she returned to watching Pandora. The day's events seemed to have exhausted the poor child, who could hardly keep her eyes opened as she moved her small hands up to rub them as she slouched on Bill's knee before yawning loudly.

Laura stood up then, reaching into the cockpit to help Pandora out. "It looks like our viper pilot needs a good night's sleep" She revealed to Pandora, who went to protest as she stood on the top step, but her pleads were drowned out by another yawn. As Laura held the child's hand and escorted her down the steps, Bill quickly followed behind them, stopping as he arrived at the bottom one. Without even having to be asked, the man bent down to pick up the child, allowing Pandora to comfortably rest her head down on his shoulder, using it as a pillow, and lock her arms around his neck. Reaching up, Laura slipped the blanket and elephant between Pandora's chest and Bill's shoulder, watching as the child snuggled into the objects.

By the time they had walked from the viper to the nearby raptor. Pandora had fallen into the land of dreams; peacefully asleep on Bill's shoulder. "I think you wore her out" Laura said in a soft whisper, not wanting to wake the child up from her slumber. "At least you can be sure that she'll sleep the entire night" Bill offered, wondering if Pandora was the sort of child to sleep through the night or wake up as four in the morning and demand entrance into their parent's bed like Zak and Lee had at that age. "That is always a relief" Laura confessed, hoping that perhaps both she and Pandora would get some much needed sleep.

As he boarded the familiar raptor, Bill considered leaving the child in the back seat before quickly changing his mind. As Laura moved towards the front and sat herself down in the passenger seat, Bill carefully lowered Pandora into her arms, hoping to keep the girl in her state of deep sleep. With the child out of his arms, Bill powered up the engine of the raptor before sitting himself down in the pilot's seat. "I've never heard of the admiral piloting a raptor" Laura teased with a raised eyebrow, leaning her head back against the seat as she turned her head to look at him. "There's plenty of things you don't know about me Laura" Bill informed her as he powered up the raptor, effortlessly guiding it out of Galactica and towards Colonial One.

"Thank you" Laura announced as they arrived back at Colonial One, the pair departing the raptor and boarding the Presidential vessel. "For everything" She said, leaning in to place a soft kiss on the man's harsh cheek, careful not to wake Pandora as she did so. "The pleasure was all mine"Bill confessed, knowing there was nothing he would rather do than spend time with Pandora and Laura. Acting as though neither of them had a care in the universe, as though they were the leaders of the last remaining humans on a mission to find Earth. With Laura proclaimed as the dying leader who will guide the people to Earth. Though it seemed the woman had found herself yet another role.

Walking through the compartment, Laura guided the way towards Pandora's makeshift cot. Bill slowly lowered the girl down into the bed, lifting her hands from around his neck before pulling up the blankets and tucking the girl in for the night. Laura doubted she had ever seen such peaceful a sight.

Finding Earth was their number one priority. Bill was right, they had to get rid of the cylons, one way or another. Laura was a generally forgiving person, but what the cylons had done...it was unforgivable. In Caprica, they would have been handed a death sentence without a second thought, why should it be different now?

The sun will rise on their faces someday. Laura had to believe in that. The prophet had to guide the people to Earth.

As a President, a supposed prophet and now a parent, Laura had to find Earth.

She had no other choice.


	5. Hero

"Is there really any place in all the universe for such a piece?" Tori joked, lifting the rather ill chosen painting of Gaius Baltar. In Laura's mind, a ceremonial burning of the painting was in order. "Over the toilet perhaps" Laura suggested, shaking her head as she pealed her eyes away from the horrific painting. She had almost forgotten how ego centered Baltar had been. Almost.

Pandora slouched on Laura's leather chair, struggling to keep her droopy red eyes opened as she attempted to recover from the excitement of yesterday's events. Gripping her blanket close to her chest, Pandora yawned loudly, grabbing her guardian's attention once more. "Too much excitement in one day I think" Laura chimed, thankful that the girl had at least enjoyed yesterday, even if it had left her completely exhausted.

It was then that something caught Laura's eye. A black leather spiral folder embossed with the Galactica symbol. They had no such thing on Colonial One - that was when she remembered the origin of the piece - Billy. "I can't believe I was going to throw this out" Laura muttered, covering her mouth with her hand for a moment before opening the folder slowly, as though it could fall apart at any moment. "This is the dossier that Billy prepared for me for my first day on Galactica" She revealed, flicking her eyes up at Tori as her current assistant walked towards her.

Glancing at the dossier, Pandora spotted a familiar face staring back at her. "Bill!" The child marveled, lifting herself up onto her knees as she reached out to clasp her hands around Laura's upper arm in order to get a better look at the photographs. Of course, the child was only interested in the photographs of Bill - as well as her Uncle Saul. "Can I see?" Pandora asked, reaching out to take the crippled photograph from her guardian. As Tori appeared at Laura's shoulder, she read the black text at the bottom of the first photograph. "The Valkyrie, was that Adama's command before Galactica?" She asked, looking up at Laura for an answer. Laura nodded and hummed in reply before handing the photograph over to the impatient Pandora.

"This year marks Admiral Adama's..." Tori spoke as she leaned over Laura's shoulder to get a better look at the information, nodding her head as she attempted to do the math in her head. "45th anniversary in the colonial fleet" She concluded, smiling to herself as Laura flicked through the pages of the dossier. "In fact his commission date is only a few days away" Tori informed her, taking the dossier from Laura as the President stepped around her desk.

Laura walked the length of her office, placing both hands against the thin material of her army green shirt before turning on her heel to face Tori and Pandora. "I think I want to have a ceremony" She thought aloud, pursing her lips as she pondered it for a moment before nodding her head. "Let's give the Admiral a medal - for forty five years of devoted service" Laura concluded, coming to a stop in front of her desk. This was exactly what the fleet needed; a celebration, and who better too celebrate than the great William Adama himself? Laura could think of no one else. "Couldn't come at a better time" Tori agreed, thinking on the same wavelength as Laura. The last two years had been plagued with nothing but tragedies, it would be refreshing to have a celebration instead.

"Give the people something to celebrate for a change" Laura added, heading back up to the desk and stepping around her chair to stand beside Pandora. "Can I wear something pretty?" The child asked, hiding her teasing smile behind her blanket. After all, she had been limited to the small selection of clothes that Laura had managed to gather for her following her arrival on Colonial One. "Only if I can wear something pretty too" Laura joked with a chuckle, placing herself down on the leather armrest of Pandora's chair, earning a giggle from the child in response.

Due to the difficulty in manufacturing clothes in the fleet, the majority of people often donated clothes that they no longer wore, had grown out of or that had belonged to family members who has passed away. It was small mercies like this that Laura was glad of. The slightly battered cardboard box sat on the coffee table of her office, filled too the brim with children's clothes. "Pandora" Laura spoke, causing Pandora to unwillingly pull her eyes away from the book that Laura had given her. "Come and help me pick something for you to wear to Bill's medal ceremony" She coaxed, watching the child putting down her book before stepping towards the cardboard box, curiously looking inside.

Laura quickly threw aside everything that was simply too small or too big for Pandora, leaving a small pile of suitable clothes for the child to pick from. "See anything you like?" She asked, bending down onto her knees beside the girl so that she was at eye level with her as they rummaged through the small pile, casting away items that neither liked. "This one!" Pandora announced happily, clutching the vibrant red pleated dress in one hand and the matching cardigan in another.

The colour reminded Laura of the outfit she had worn at Baltar's ground breaking ceremony on New Caprica. In fact, Laura was positive that it was the same tone of red. She felt the corners of her lips beginning to turn up in a smile as she remembered Bill's comments about the outfit, and how the red had apparently suited her. As much as she would have loved to wear it again, it was hardly appropriated for a President to be seen wearing it at a public event. Though, she could only begin to imagine Bill's reaction to such an outfit. Pandora looked rather pleased with herself for selecting such a piece. "Can I try it on?" She asked, raising her eyebrows as her eyes widened slightly before Laura nodded her head. "Of course" She replied, moving to help Pandora into the selected outfit.

Yes, Bill would certainly like it. Tori appeared at the door then, peering in at the President and her ward after Pandora had gotten into her dress. "The Admiral's on the line" She admitted, causing Laura to abandoned the mountains of boxes in order to get to her office and pick up the corded phone.

Telling Pandora that she had to stay on Colonial One hadn't been easy. The girl had all but cried her eyes out, begging to come with her. Though Laura was cautious about taking the girl to Galactica's daycare - not wanting to have to see another display of Pandora's discomfort around other children. With the promise of going to Galactica with her on the next visit, Pandora eventually calmed down well enough to allow Laura to leave on the raptor to Galactica.

Laura knew in her very bones that Bill was lying, without even a shadow of doubt in her mind. As Bulldog and Tori left them alone, she readjusted her suede teal blazer as she slouched back in her seat for a moment, crossing both slender legs as she eyed Bill across the table. He was lying too her - plain and simple. As he turned to finally look at her, she raised an eyebrow. "Are you going to tell me what really happened?" She asked, resting her arm on the back of her seat as she waited for his answer. "You're going to have to trust me on this one" Bill concluded, trying to avoid answering the lingering question as best he could.

"This is my mess. I'll fix it" He said, his voice dropping as he spoke. The last thing he needed was for Laura to get roped into his mistake, to have her name connected to his life changing mistake. The woman stood up from the metal seat, allowing it to scrap against the floor as she pulled it away from under her. "Where's Pandy?" Bill asked, attempting to ease the tension in the room. "Colonial One" Laura said in a sharp tone before leaving Bill's quarters, allowing the 'click clacking ' of her heels to echo around her as she walked. It was her belief that she could talk to Bill about anything, but it seemed that the feeling was not mutual. Bill couldn't even trust her with this, and that hurt her more than she thought it possibly could.

It wasn't long until the man himself made an unexpected visit to Colonial One. Bill looked like death warmed up. Whatever sort of fight he had gotten into, she could tell he hadn't went to Cottle afterwards. Not with the dry blood still glimmering under his nose and cheek, with three skin deep scars decorating his left cheekbone. What secret was he trying to keep from her? Laura hadn't bought his story about Bulldog's disappearance from the very beginning. Over the last two years, Laura liked to believe that she had come to read the man like an open book. Now she was sure of that. Bill was lying through his teeth. Even worse, he couldn't trust her enough to tell her why.

"What is this?" Laura asked, confused as she opened the beige cardboard folder, seeing the crisp black print displayed on the ivory parchment. Bill's resignation letter - something Laura believed she would never see. Her eyes scanned through the page, shutting it as Bill lowered his head in dismay. "Your resignation? You've got to be kidding me" She announced, a sense of disbelief in her voice as she dropped the folder onto her desk in shock.

Bill folded his hands in front of his waist, taking a breath before speaking. He had known as soon as he made his decision to resign that Laura would be the toughest to convince. "I've said before, we can't hide from the things we've done" He confessed, shaking his head. Laura was the last person whom he wanted to tell the truth too, but his resignation letter had forced him to tell her the truth. He didn't want her impression of him changed. What he did wasn't right, and if he could he would change it all in a heartbeat - but that was the past, and he had to pay for his mistakes. "I see no other way around this situation" He concluded, deciding that the only way to deal with his guilty conscious was to resign from his position. Perhaps this was all coming to the surface for a reason? As a sign from the Lords of Kobol themselves.

Pandora sat at the back of Laura's office, sitting in the left corner in one of the former flight chairs. Curiously, the child looked up from her seat at the two adults as she heard the pitch of Laura's voice jump slightly, clearly unamused with the Admiral, while Bill's had a more mournful tone to it.

"Maybe it's time, Laura" He suggested. After all, wasn't his time up? He wasn't fit to be the Admiral. The fleet needed - no, they deserved - someone young, fresh and modern like Lee. Without the stress of being Admiral, Bill could focus on the more important things in his life. His relationships with Lee, Laura and Pandora being central to that. He just prayed that the latter two hadn't been damaged as a result of his mess.

However, Laura knew that Bill could never separate himself from his position as Admiral. Even if he did resign, she was confident that he would never be out of the CIC. Being the Admiral of the fleet was engraved into his blood and bones. While she had no doubt about Lee's ability, he was not his father. He was not the infamous William Adama. His time would come eventually, but it was not today.

"Sit down, Bill" Laura ordered, feeling her blood boiling as she squinted her eyes slightly. Watching Laura for a moment longer, Bill sat himself down on the visitor's seat; feeling like a school child who had been sent to the headmistress' office. "I've been naive" He attempted to explain, straightening his back as Laura slouched forward on the desk, using her elbow to balance herself. "Have you ever thought that the Admiralty may have set you up to provoke a war they wanted?" Laura wondered aloud, knowing exactly how Bill would have thought. She had the displeasure of meeting several of the Admirals during many of Adar's galas and functions; she wouldn't be shocked if Bill had been set up as a scapegoat for them. "We know why the cylons attacked us and it wasn't any one thing" She reminded the man, wanting to show him that it was not his fault. He was not to blame for the provoking of an attack that resulted in the genocide of billions of innocent human beings.

Though Bill was stubborn, Laura had always known that. She did however agree that something needed to be done about it. Lifting the beige envelope from her writing desk, Laura took the freshly printed invitation out of its envelope and held it out for him. The gold foil glimmered in the dim light. "Medal of distinction" Bill's voice was soft as he dropped the invitation back down onto the desk.

Pandora's feet gently pattered against the carpet floors of Laura's office as she moved towards Bill, stopping beside the man. "I picked a pretty dress" The child confessed in a soft voice, looking up at Bill with pleading eyes. Although she didn't understand the seriousness of the situation, she could sense Laura's discomfort and Bill's sting of depression. Bringing her cotton blanket up to her face, Pandora shifted from foot to foot. Sighing to himself, Bill knew he couldn't deny Pandora anything in the universe. She had him well and truly wrapped around her little finger. Reaching out, he lifted her up by the waist, as though it was the most natural thing in the world, before setting her down on his knee. Pandora rested her head against Bill's chest, using it as her own personal pillow before she glanced over at Laura.

"Let me strap a frakking medal to your chest" Laura argued, feeling her own stubborn personality coming to play as she folded her hands on the writing desk."I can't" Bill fought back, even though Laura did have a point, something had to be done. "It's not for you. It's for them. Stand up there, acknowledge your fleet and give them what they need - a hero." Laura paused then, looking down at Pandora - it wasn't just a father figure that she needed in her life, but a hero as well - then back up at Bill "That will be your penance, even if it kills you" She concluded, resting her head down on the palm of her hand. Having the final word on the argument.

"On the behalf of everyone in this room, it is my honor to present you - Admiral Adama - with the Medal of Distinction for your 45 years of courageous service to the Colonial Fleet" Laura announced.

The hanger deck had been transformed into a makeshift ceremony room. The vipers and raptors had been moved to allow standing space for the invited guests, Galactica crew and members of the press. Laura stood at the podium, her fingers clasped around the cold metal of the medallion as she finished her address to the watching audience. As Bill came to stand level with her, Laura tried her best to conceal her smile as she raised the medallion above his head before placing it around the man's neck. As she pulled away, the President allowed her hand to brush against Bill's for a short moment.

Stepping down from the podium, Laura could hear the fierce round of applause that broke out across the room. This was exactly what the fleet had needed. A celebration; not their usual mourning session. Standing beside Helo, Laura felt a small familiar hand reach out to grab her own. Pandora had a joyful smile plastered across her porcelain face, her heart pounding in time with the applauding as she had to stop herself from jumping up and down with excitement - remembering Laura's words of warning about having to be on her best behavior. Laura had been cautious about the ever present press, and the last thing any of them needed was another series of awkward and difficult questions about Pandora. Even more so when even Laura herself had countless of unanswered questions about the child. Though, like Bill had said, perhaps it was for the best that she wasn't aware of all the facts.

Bill's response had been short and sweet, just as she had expected it to be. He wasn't the sort for long, drawn out, extravagant affairs; in fact, Laura was surprised he even allowed her to give him the medal. As he finished speaking, another series of applause filled the hanger deck. Once again applauding the father figure of the fleet. As Bill moved to step off the podium and towards Lee and Kara, Laura kept a hold of Pandora's hand and escorted the girl off as well, though staying well behind Bill. After all, this was his moment of celebration; not theirs'.

Stepping off to the side, Laura watched as Bill walked towards his only son, shaking the man's hand before accepting a warm hug from Kara. As Tori arrived at her side, Laura allowed her assistant to escort her over to the waiting press. The sooner she gave a comment on the ceremony, the sooner the press would leave her and Pandora alone. While talking to various reporters, Laura was cautious about the ever watching eyes of Bill Adama, even as he moved through the crowds too meet and greet his guests. Bill was never far away. He acted as Laura's permanent shadow, and now Pandora's as well.

As the guests began to file out of the hanger deck, with it once again returning to normal as the crew dismantled the podium, Bill headed towards the waiting Laura and Pandora. "Congratulations" Laura praised, smiling at the man as the child beside her moved to tightly hug him around his legs. Bill chuckled to himself as he ruffled Pandora's hair slightly before looking up at Laura. "I think this calls for a celebration" He admitted as Pandora let go of his legs and stood between the two adults.

It was then that Bill spotted the raptor being brought forward, with Bulldog and Cottle appearing through the hanger deck entrance. "I have something to do first, it'll only take me a minute" The man admitted, taking the uniform from the bench before walking towards the other pair as Cottle was speaking to Bulldog. He waited until the white haired man had finished speaking before he spoke.

"Bulldog" At once the former pilot looked up at the oncoming man. "You forgot something" Bill said, holding the neatly folded colonial uniform in his hands as the younger man turned to face him. "I can't" Bulldog muttered, shaking his head as he looked from the uniform to the Admiral. "Take it. You're not getting off that easy" He coaxed, holding the uniform out for the man to take. As the younger man reached out to take the uniform from him, holding it as though it was a plane of glass, Bill nodded his head. "Once a pilot, always a pilot" He announced, relieving the tense atmosphere around them.

"I see a lot has happened since" Bulldog joked, nodding his head towards the two figures on the balcony of the hanger deck. Bill glanced over to the pair, feeling the corners of his thin lips pull up in a smile as he saw Pandora waving at him excitedly as Laura simply smiled at him. "I guess you could say that" He admitted, not sure exactly how he would describe their current situation. What exactly was he to Laura - and Pandora as well? Whatever it was, Bill wouldn't have it any other way. "I'm glad you finally found some happiness" The younger man admitted, nodding his head at his former superior officer as he stood to attention and saluted the man one final time. "Admiral" With one last salute, Bulldog boarded the raptor that would take him to his new ship - for a new start and a second chance.

Watching as the heavy metal doors of the raptor shut behind the former viper pilot, Bill set off towards the balcony, his eyes glued to the two figures at the top. His Laura and Pandy. As he reached the top steps, Laura walked towards him. A content smile playing on her lips as she reached out to slip her hand through his arm as Pandora took Laura's hand, holding it as the trio left the hanger deck.

The walk through Galactica had been a silent once, each of the trio lost in their own thoughts. As they arrived in Bill's quarters, Pandora slipped her hand out of Laura's grip before making her away across to the sofa at the corner of the room. "I think this calls for a glass of something strong" Bill thought aloud, disappearing in such of her remaining bottle of whiskey and two whiskey glasses. Heading over to the sofa, Laura sat herself down next to Pandora.

Bill stepped back into the room, one hand balancing the neck of two whiskey glasses while another clutched the half drunken bottle of whiskey. "Just a small glass" Laura requested, deciding that drinking anymore than that was unacceptable around a child of Pandora's age. After filling the glasses, Bill handed one over to Laura then seated himself down on the other side of Pandora. Before speaking, Bill took a sharp drink of the liquid, allowing it to burn the back of his throat. "You were right, that is a very pretty dress, Pandora" He admitted, admiring the girl's pleated dress when he noticed a striking similarity to another outfit. "It looks exactly like something your mother wore once" Bill admitted, catching Laura off guard and almost causing her to choke on her whiskey. She wasn't sure if it was the fact that he had made the connection between Pandora's outfit and the one she had worn on New Caprica that shocked her - or if it was the fact that he had openly for the first time referred to her as Pandora's mother. Laura presumed it was more of the latter. "I told you so!" Pandora giggled, her eyes glimmering in the dim light.

Composing herself once more, Laura pulled her eyes away from the floor to look up at Bill, attempting to ignore the black flips that her stomach was currently doing as her heart pounded loudly in her chest. Reaching out, she wrapped her arm around Pandora's shoulder and allowed the child to rest her head down against her. It didn't take Bill long to reach out and take Laura's hand in his own, giving it a gentle squeeze. In that moment, Laura couldn't picture any other place in the universe that she would rather be in. Dropping a kiss on Pandora's forehead, Laura looked over the child's head at Bill as he beamed down at them both. New Caprica happened for a reason. In that moment, Laura had came to accept what had happened. Destiny was often a wicked thing, but it had brought her to Pandora; and for that, she was eternally grateful.

"Bill..." Laura began, but stopped when a loud knock sounded from the door. There was more than enough rumors flying around the fleet about them, and the last thing they needed was another set added to that. Standing up from the sofa, Laura reached out for Pandora's hand before disappearing into the other room as Bill went to open the door for his uninvited guest. Laura sighed to herself as she heard Saul's voice echo through Bill's quarters. It seemed they would be stuck in there for a while.

Sitting herself down onto the bed, Laura helped Pandora to sit next to her. Deciding that it would be best if Saul didn't hear them, Laura took too absentmindedly braiding Pandora's hair for her. The comforting action was quickly putting Pandora to sleep. As Laura secured the hair tie to the bottom of Pandora's braid, she rested her hand on the girl's shoulder. "Go to sleep, Pandy." She whispered, hoping that Saul wouldn't be talking with Bill for too much longer.

As Pandora rested her back against Bill's bed, she pulled the only woman down with her. She turned to rest her head down on Laura's arm, allowing the woman to hold her protectively against her chest; like any mother would with their daughter. Within mere moments, Pandora could no longer keep her eyes opened as her chest began to rise and fall in time with her deep breathing. Laura allowed herself a moment to enjoy the silence, and unusual occurrence for the President. She slipped the blanket up around Pandora's shoulders as she stroked the girl's hair for a short moment before she too fell into a peaceful slumber.

Even though Bill was glad that Saul had finally began to open up to him, he was cautious of the woman and child currently hiding from his long term friend. If Saul's reaction to the dinner he had managed to walk in on was any indication, he wasn't exactly overjoyed with Laura's more active role in Bill's life. As Saul finished his last sip of whiskey, he stood from the table. "Thank you, Bill" He said, filled with a new sense of motivation. "I expect to see you in the CIC tomorrow" Bill announced in a serious tone, to which Saul stopped mid-step and turned to face his friend and Admiral. "You can count on it Bill" Saul announced before leaving the Admiral's quarters, allowing the door too shut behind him. After clearing away the half drunk whiskey bottle and stained glasses, Bill went in search of Laura and Pandora.

The scene in front of him warmed Bill's heart, and engraved itself into his memory for eternity. Laura lay peacefully asleep in his bunk, her arms filled with the sleeping Pandora. She looked as though she didn't have a single care in the universe - if only that was the truth. He couldn't help himself from walking towards the sleeping pair. As he stopped at the side of the bed, he lifted the cotton crimson red blanket and dropped it across Laura's sleeping body. While lifting Laura's pale slender hand to rest it over the blanket, Bill took a moment to hold it in his own, giving it a small squeeze. Reaching over Laura, he managed to drop a kiss on Pandora's ivory forehead before dropping another on Laura's soft cheek. It seemed the small compassionate action was enough to disturb Laura's peaceful slumber.

Bringing his free hand to Laura's cheek, he gently creased her soft skin. "Go back to sleep Laura" He whispered, knowing that Laura was in desperate need of catching up on at least some sleep. However, as he tried to slip his hand away from Laura's, she tightened her grip of his hand, preventing him from doing so. "Stay" Laura pleaded, her eyes struggling to stay open as her thick eyelashes fluttered. Bill didn't have to be asked twice as he lowered himself down onto the bunk. With one arm wrapped around Laura's waist, Bill rested his head down against the soft ivory pillow next to Laura's. Before long, the man had followed the other pair into the land of dreams. If morning never came to be. Bill would be content to stay like that for eternity. Without a care in the universe.


	6. Unfinished Business

"Can we go and see Bill now?" Pandora pleaded, growing tired as she looked up impatiently at Laura. They had been on board Galactica for over three hours now, most of which had been spent in the makeshift boardroom agonising over a small mountain of outrageous demands from the Quorum of Twelve and their delegates. All Pandora wanted to do was go and see Bill; a fact she continued to remind Laura of at each and every possible occasion.

By this stage, Laura had lost count. Both of how many ignorant and foolish reports she had been forced to read through and how many times Pandora had begged to go and see Bill. Shutting the cardboard folder over, Laura nodded her head in silent acceptance, having given up on the latest disastrous report. Pushing herself off the cold metal chair, Pandora slipped on her button-down cardigan as she clutched her cherished elephant against her elbow. "Ready!" She beamed, her mouth wide open as she clasped her hands in front of her, rocking herself back and forth on her patent black shoes.

Since the medal ceremony, Pandora had hardly been out of her red dress. Declaring that she wanted to wear it because it reminded Bill of 'something that her mother had worn once'. After the first couple of days, Laura had given up arguing with the child over the issue. Standing up from her seat, Laura collected the ever-growing pile of paperwork and loaded it into her leather handbag. Throwing the hefty handbag over her shoulder, she held her hand out for Pandora to take. The child all but skipped towards Laura, reaching out to take her hand with a vivid smile and a spring in her step. "Come on!" Pandora exclaimed, clutching Laura's hand as she moved towards the door of the boardroom, attempting to get to Bill as quickly as humanly possible.

By now, the four year old knew the hallways of Galactica like the back of her hand. Turning the corner, she broke away from Laura as they edged closer to Bill's quarters. "Just two seconds, Pandy" Laura said, stepping in front of her ward in an attempt to open the cold grey hatch. "Bill?" The woman called as she stepped into the room, holding the hatch open as Pandora slipped under her arm and into the familiar quarters. "Bill!?" Pandora boomed, disappearing into the bedroom with a skip in her step as she searched for her partner in crime. "Bill?" Her voice fell sharply as she came to the realisation that the man she was searching for was in fact no where too be found.

As Pandora's bottom lip started to shiver, Laura decided that the sooner they found Bill the better. "Come on you, we best find Bill before those water works start" Laura comforted, reaching out for the child with anxious hands, mindful of the extremes that a child's waterworks could get to as she headed out of Bill's empty quarters. It wasn't just Bill that seemed to be missing. It looked as though the majority of the Galactica crew had up and left. Pandora was growing more distressed by the minute as Laura carried her through the deserted hallways of Galactica in search of Bill.

"He's at the dance; room opposite the hanger deck" The rough, deep voice almost made Laura jump out of her skin. Turning on her heel, the President came face to face with Doctor Cottle; who put the amber flame of his cigarette out upon seeing the child on her hip. After all, the last thing he wanted was a lecture about smoking around children - especially the President's. "Is it that obvious?" Laura wondered aloud, setting Pandora down onto the ground as the child wiped away her unshed tears. "You looked as though you had just lost your right arm and Pandora seems to be a daddy's girl. So yes, it is that obvious" Cottle announced, respectfully nodding his head at the President and the child beside her before making his own way down the hallway, wanting to pick up a flask of whiskey - and now another cigarette - before going to the dance himself.

Pandora seemed anxious to get to Bill, like a daughter missing her father. Laura attempted to keep in step with Pandora, who hurried down the hallways like a Viper in flight. The child suddenly skidded to a stop at the door, turning around to look at her adoptive mother. Opening the door cautiously, the room sounded like the ringside of a circus, Laura could instantly tell that this certainly wasn't your typical dance.

Every viper pilot and half of the crew had to be at this so called 'dance'. Holding onto Pandora's smaller hand, the woman stepped inside and searched through the crowds of pilots, CIC crew and hanger deck crew. It was then that Laura noticed the boxing ring placed at the center of the room, with the majority of the audience glued to the actions in the center of the boxing ring. Walking further into the room, Laura could eventually pick Bill out from the crowd. "Bill!" Pandora seemed to have spotted the man as well, as she let go of Laura's hand and slipping through the crowds to reach him.

The child launched herself at the man, wrapping her arms around his leg in a deadlock before looking up at him with her best puppy dog impression. "I couldn't find you!" She protested, in a strong voice, which caused Bill to chuckle to himself. Pandora really was the double of Laura; even if it was a fact that puzzled Bill.

Walking up beside the pair, the President smiled to herself contently. "My father was an avid fight fan. I adored my father so I love a good fight" Laura confessed, glancing at the man beside her out of the corner of her eye before returning her attention to the boxing match in the center of the ring. Bill paused for a moment, as though time itself had frozen. Laura's Mona Lisa smile captivated him - it always had. In the dull light, she looked more carefree and youthful than he had seen her in a short lifetime.

Turning her attention away from the fight, Laura could feel her lips pulling up in a teasing smile "I heard about your so called dance, accidentally I might add" She revealed, faking a serious tone as Pandora clawed her hands on Bill's leg in a bid to pull his attention away from her guardian. "I can't see!" Pandora said, jumping up and down on the balls of her feet. Laura shook her head; the little girl was certainly a curious little thing. Bending down, Bill scooped the child up onto his hip so that she could see into the ring. With wide eyes, Pandora attempted to follow the fierce and sharp movements of the pair currently fighting.

"Don't take it personally, it's sort of a private tradition" He admitted, turning himself to face the woman beside him. After all, he had never expected Laura to be someone who enjoyed fighting - otherwise he would have invited her in a heartbeat. In his mind, rather ignorantly, he had thought she was the sort who enjoyed the ballet and a glass of chardonnay, not a ringside seat at a blood covered boxing game. It seemed she had mastered an art for surprising him. "Tradition?" Laura wondered aloud, after all, how could beating the life out of your fellow crew mate be considered a tradition? "What's a trediaton..?" Pandora asked, having lost interest in the game going on in front of her.

"Tradition, Pandy" Laura corrected, watching as the child again attempted to pronounce the word but failed, giving up with a disappointed sigh. "It's something that a family always does together." Laura attempted to explain to the girl, reaching out to take her hand with a comforting smile. "What's ours?" Pandora asked, looking with curious eyes from Laura to Bill then back again. The question had caught both adults off guard. Laura was well aware that they were getting a little too close; with both herself and Bill naturally falling into the parent roles in Pandora's life. Though were they a family unit? She and Bill were growing closer by the day but...a family? Laura doubted that Bill wanted to go through the child rearing years again - even with her. Though it was Bill's turn to do the surprising. "I guess you and I will have to come up with a few of our own" Bill concluded, getting a cheerful chuckle and gleeful smile from Pandora, who rested her head down against the man's hefty shoulder.

"Did you throw your tags in there?" Laura asked, raising a thin eyebrow as she waited for his answer. "I wish. All the frustrations that I have" He said, wanting nothing more than to punch and throw the anger out of himself and lift the burden of stress and responsibility from his shoulders. Perhaps he could? "What?" Laura asked worriedly, knowing that look all too well - Bill was up to something. "Can you hold these?" Bill asked, not waiting for an answer as he took the gold plated wings off his uniform and placed them into the palm of Laura's ivory pale hand.

The Admiral lifted the thick ropes of the ring before pushing himself up and into the empty boxing ring. Standing in the center of the ring, Bill rolled up the end of his navy sleeves as he scanned the room in search of his boxing partner. "Chief, get your fat lazy ass up here" He commanded, his booming and rough voice left the room in momentary silence before it erupted in whispers and hushed voices - followed by the occasional cry of support. Laura stepped forward as the Chief wasted no time in getting into the ring, rallied on by the cries of the crowd around him. She just prayed that Bill knew what he was getting himself into. The Chief was a lot younger, fitter and quicker than Bill; though he always did find a way to surprise her. She just hoped he wasn't being foolish.

"Bill?" Pandora stood as close to the ring as possible, her eyes fearfully watching her father figure. "Why?" She asked, turning around to look at her mother with wondering eyes. Shaking her head, Laura bent down so that she was at eye level with the child. "It's a game" The President spoke in half truths, deciding that it was best if Pandora didn't know what was going to unfold.

When Bill delivered his first blow, Pandora made enough noise for the entire crowd. "Bill, hit him!" The girl shouted, while she didn't understand the game, she knew that it was better that Bill was the one doing the punching than him being punched. Laura rested her hand protectively on Pandora's shoulder, fearful the child might decide to slip through the ropes and join Bill's battle. Her free hand gripped the thick crisp white rope, as she cautiously watched Bill, feeling her heart in her mouth as she followed his every step.

As Bill stumbled against the rope, Pandora gasped, her eyes widening with fear as Laura reached out to touch Bill's back; attempting to offer him support and reassurance before he moved back into the ring - hitting the chief once more. Laura could hear the blood pounding in her ears as the younger man seemed to use his advantage over Bill. Quicker, lighter, younger. Bill was no match for the Chief.

Bill was having the life beaten out of him. Laura felt as though she could feel every punch hitting Bill's face. By this stage, Pandora was no longer watching her father figure with an admiring gaze. Instead, the child had attempted to hide behind her mother, using Laura's slender legs as a barricade between herself and the traumatic occurrences in the boxing ring. With both hands clasped over her small ears, Pandora shut her eyes as she attempted to block out the sound of clashing skin.

Laura wasted no time in slipping between the ropes and getting into the ring during halftime, with Cottle on her heels. "You insist on doing this! You're crazy right" She scolded, attempting to reason with the man as she arrived in front of him, seeing no reason for him to put himself through such unnecessary trauma.

Reaching out for the grey cardboard bucket, Bill wondered if the Chief had managed to knock out tooth or two out. "You wanna do this?" Laura asked, though knowing that Bill's stubbornness and self-pride wouldn't allow him to forfeit the match. "Yeah" He replied, confirming Laura's earlier fears. Tapping the damp cloth onto the open wounds and oozing gashes on Bill's forehead, she did her best to clean up the crimson blood as she spoke "He's coming in wide, hit him with your left hook" She advised, remembering her years of watching boxing with her beloved father - even if she had only be half interested in it all back then.

"You wanna win?" Laura demanded to know, praying that the answer was no. She wasn't sure she could cope with much more of this - seeing him being beaten and left black and blue wasn't something Laura enjoyed, in fact, her heart dropped even further with every hit. "I'm not gonna win" Bill concluded, pushing himself off the short wooden stool in and back into the ring.

As the shrilling squeal of the whistle announced the commencing of the second half, Laura slipped through the ropes once more and back down to the anxious Pandora - the girl looked on the verge of a breakdown. If she had known for even a moment that this wasn't your usual 'dance' then Laura wouldn't have taken Pandora inside, but now there was no point in trying to leave with the girl. Pandora had seemed to inherit Bill's stubbornness during their days together, and Laura was confident that the girl wouldn't leave under she knew Bill was safe and sound. As Laura picked the girl up, she allowed the child to wrap her legs tightly around her slender waist before locking short her arms around her neck. With one hand buried in Pandora's thick hair and the other resting on the girl's back, Laura impatiently watched the second half.

As the chief continued to deliver blow after blow to Bill's crimson covered face, Pandora buried her head a little further into Laura's shoulder, tears filling her eyes as she tried not to look at the falling man. Taking a deep breath, Laura shut her eyes for a moment as she kissed the crown of the child's head. No one in the room was speaking - no one could willingly watch the events unfolding before their very eyes.

It had only taken a handful of blows to knock the Admiral off his feet and onto his back with a heavy thud. Laura prayed to the Lords of Kobol that Bill had endured enough to call the fight to an end. As the room dropped to a dreary silence, Pandora fussed in Laura's arms, silently demanding down to see the injured man. Allowing the Chief to help him up, Bill could feel his back starting to go, the tender muscles felt as though they had been pulled and torn in each and every direction. Looking around at the crew, who's faces seemed plagued with concern, worry and anxiety, Bill cleared his throat before speaking.

"When you get in this ring, you be prepared to fight - or you dishonor what we're here for." He said, his voice harsh and deep as his eyes narrowed. "Remember, when you fight a man, he's not your friend. The same goes when you lead men. I forgot that once." He paused, deciding that what he needed to say had to be said, if not by him then by someone else. "I let you get too close, all of you. I dropped my guard. I gave some of your breaks, let some of you go, before the fight was really over" Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted Lee standing near both Dee and Kara - he knew he should have kept a more watchful eye on his son, now he was too late."I let this crew and this family disband" Bill confessed, looking down at Laura and Pandora, the former's eyes were clouded with relief and reassurance; he could always depend on Laura for that."And we paid the price in lives" The hairs on his back would stand up every time he walked down the cold grey Galactica hallways and came face to face with the pictures of the dead, a makeshift graveyard for those they lost. "That can't happen again" He concluded, the fleet couldn't survive going through it all again.

Once more, the room dropped into a dead silence before Bill stepped off the ring. Pandora sniffled as she watched Bill clasped Laura's smaller hand in his own, allowing her to assist him down. The young girl couldn't ignore the surge of pain that went through his face. "Madame President" Bill acknowledged the woman with a slight nod as he held his free hand - which still shook from the round of punches he had attempt to throw at the Chief - out for Pandora. She stepped forward to take the man's worn out hand, her eyes still filled with unshed tears as she walked close beside him. "Admiral" Laura said, holding onto his hand as she made a path for them through the crowds, whom stepped back out of their way, gawking at the trio as they headed towards the deserted hallway.

By the time they had arrived at Adama's quarters, Pandora was clinging onto the man as though her very existence depended on it. "I have half a mind to send you to Cottle to get that head of yours looked at!" Laura protested, pouring a plentiful glass of whiskey for the man before going in search of his first aid kit. "It's fine, I landed on my back" Bill said, attempting to soothe her worries as he sat on the ash grey sofa next to the walnut table with Pandora curled up on his knee, resting her head against his chest as it gently rising and falling underneath her. "I mean before that. You must of lost your mind to have done that, Bill" Laura said, her irritation clear in her voice. He should have known better than challenging the Chief.

"You..you scared me, Bill. What would have happened if the Chief had of knocked the lights straight out of you?" Laura hadn't expected herself to get so worked up by it all, but he had put himself in danger, and even more so with Pandora standing there to bare witness to it all. "I know, it just happened" He confessed, still not remembering his mental reasoning for getting into the center of the ring in the first place - perhaps he should take Laura's advice and see Cottle.

Sitting down beside the pair, Laura began to wipe away the dried blood and close over the open wounds on the man's hard skin. "Can we...make it a tradition to not go... 'dancing'?" Pandora asked, hastily looking up at the adults with her large chocolate brown eyes, hoping her wish would be granted. Bill chuckled to himself then, nodding his head as he looked down at the girl. "I promise" He swore, looking at Laura who rolled her eyes, suspecting it would be the first of several traditions Pandora and Bill would attempt to make. The worry and anxiety effortlessly slipped away from Laura as the room filled with the pair's laughter, the noise was music to her ear, and assured her that even after Bill's latest stunt nothing had changed - except perhaps a new tradition between the dysfunctional family unit.


	7. The Passage

"Pandora, you have to eat" Bill argued, holding the half broken protein bar out for the child, who simply crossed her arms and shook her head defiantly. "No" The young child protested, her voice sharp and laced with annoyance. "You're being as stubborn as your mother" He concluded, sighing to himself while putting the protein bar down on the lustrous walnut table. Pandora simply accepted his statement with a nod and a teasing smile, reaching out for the protein bar, she broke it in two, holding the larger part out for Bill "You eat to!" She demanded, looking up at him with pleading eyes until he lifted the bar from between her snow kissed fingers. "Thank you" Bill said, having given up fighting with the young child.

Tearing the bar into little, compact pieces, the child savored a handful of them, allowing them to fill her empty stomach before safely wrapping the bar back up into its plastic packaging. Bill watched as the child slipped it into the pocket of her light pink rain jacket. Sensing the older man watching her, Pandora glanced up. "Laura needs a piece!" She exclaimed, giggling to herself as she pulled over the zip to hide her treasure, keeping it safe and sound until her mother could eat it. The young girl's maturity and selflessness never failed to surprise the Admiral of the Colonial Fleet. If Bill hadn't been exposed to the truth about Pandora, he would have mistaken her as Laura's child - something many in the fleet had done.

"What do I need?" Laura made her presence known as she leaned against the cold grey door frame of the Admiral's private quarters. She had watched the scene from the surrounding shadows for several minutes, content to simply watch the man and child bonding together like any other father and daughter. It was small moments like this that made their battle against the Cylons worthwhile. All Laura wanted was for Pandora to be able to run through the damp emerald grass, to smell the aroma of the freshly bloomed flowers as the sun beamed down against her porcelain skin. That's what Laura prayed to the Lords of Kobol for each dawn and dusk. "Food!" Pandora exclaimed, undoing the zip of her coat and producing the safely guarded broken protein bar, handing it out for her mother. "You have to eat" She demanded, sounding older than her four years as Laura advanced towards the small child.

Taking the protein bar, Laura split it down the middle before handing one half over to Pandora. "Only if you eat to" She protested, only satisfied when the child gobbled the food down in front of her. Laura would rather starve than have Pandora do so, no matter how hungry or emotionally drained she was. Her daughter was her main concern. The food rations seemed to be worsening by the hour; much to Laura's constant stress and anxiety. Even as the leader of the Colonial Fleet, there was one person who Laura feared for most ... Pandora. Perhaps the hierarchy of her roles in life had changed since the mysterious child waltzed into her life - with her role as Pandora's mother coming before even that of her supreme status in the fleet.

Pandora seemed glad to have at least a little something more to fill the empty pit of her small stomach. When the child had finished every last crumb of her bar, Laura hid her piece away, deciding to save it for Pandora to feast on later. "Are you coming?" Laura asked, watching as Bill rose from his seat beside Pandora, picking his jacket up with one hand and Pandora up, holding her as though she weighted little more than a feather.

Walking between the Admiral and President, the girl reached out to slip her small fingers through Laura's longer ones, before clasping her hand around Bill's well worked hand."Where are we going?" Pandora wondered aloud, looking up at her parental figures with widened eyes. Bill and Laura exchanged a look then - Pandora would be far from pleased to be told that she had to go to the daycare. In fact, Laura was preparing herself for an endless river of tears and a temper tantrum - and that was the best case scenario!

It seemed that the further they walked through the cluttered hallways of Galactica, the more Pandora's face became masked with realisation followed by a sudden pang of fear. By the time they had come to a slow, steady stop outside the daycare, Pandora had all but attached herself to Bill's leg continuing to clutch onto their hands as though they were her vital life support. "Pandora" Laura said, her voice laced with concern for the child as she bent down to her daughter's height. Bill felt his heart fill with guilt, unable to ignore the look of pure terror that ran through his precious Pandora in that moment. Though Pandora was stubborn. Shaking her head before burying it in the creases of Bill's cotton navy trousers, the child refused to look the woman in the eyes. "I don't want to go" Pandora confessed, her voice shook as the girl swallowed a sob, her breath catching in her throat as she shut her eyes in a bid to block out the rest of the dark and dangerous world around her.

"What if I promise you can see Lee and Kara afterwards?" Bill coaxed the child, hating to see her in such a state. Laura had told him of her ongoing battle with Pandora about the dreaded daycare, he decided to put it down to typical infant clinginess, praying to never be separated from their parents. "You'll come back?" Pandora asked, her voice begging for some form of reassurance from her father figure as she glanced from Bill to Laura then back to the Admiral again, finally opening up about her deepest and darkest fear. Losing Laura and Bill. "Always" Laura promised, her voice filled with unconditional love and reassurance, the sort only felt between a mother and her child. Pandora sniffled then, feeling Bill touch her thin chocolate hair as Laura ran a comforting arm up and down her thin shoulders.

"Okay" Pandora said, sniffling away the crystal droplets that filled her widened eyes. Lifting her head from Bill's leg, she stepped forward to hug Laura, locking her arms around the woman's pale, thin neck and resting her head there for a moment before unwillingly pulling away. Pandora raised her anxious plagued eyes in an elevator motion towards the daycare worker that came to a stop beside her. "Is Pandora ready to come in now?" The bubbly blonde asked, her rosy red cheeks setting off her soft baby pink lips. Laura returned to her full height as Pandora began to drag her feet along behind her, keeping her gaze focus on the cold grey tiles below her feet as she walked towards her personal prison.

As Pandora disappeared inside, Bill brought his hand to rest under Laura's elbow, guiding her around the corner before his hand slipped down to her slender back, resting there as they walked in time with each other. "I worry about her, Bill" Laura confessed in a small whisper, keeping her eyes straight ahead of her, as though she knew that Pandora was silently sobbing her small soul out, simply from being separated from her parents. "Cottle says she's perfectly fine" Bill said, attempting to reassure the woman beside him, Laura's worry lines became more clear by the minute. "I know but it's just..." The President began, sighing to herself as she spoke, finding herself at a loss of words "It's a mother's prerogative to worry" Bill concluded, seeing the understanding wash over Laura like a wave as they arrived at the door of the CIC. "Something isn't right Bill, I can feel it" She admitted, as though she could feel it in her very bones - haunting her during every waking moment of her day, not even in her restless sleep could she escape the constant fear that ran through her. Either something was wrong with Pandora and they simply hadn't found it yet, or something horrible and haunting was going to happen to the child. Laura had a horrible feeling. Was it over exaggeration or some sixth sense preparing her for a battle that lay ahead?

Stepping into the CIC, the pair did their best to stay camouflaged at the corner of the room, attempting to make their presence known to only Cottle and Helo. After catching the younger man's eye, the Admiral signaled for them both to step into the side room with them. "How long do we have?" Laura spoke, starting the conversation as the Helo and Cottle arrived in front of them. "I'd say seven to ten days" Cottle admitted with a heavy heart, he was even beginning to doubt that they would find some sort of eatable food before their ever nearing deadline - not that he was a generally optimistic person. One person instantly entered Laura's cluttered thoughts. Pandora. A child so young couldn't survive long without food...a mere handful days at the most. Fear for her daughter ran through every bone in her body, remembering the look of starvation on Pandora's face earlier that morning. Could she face that haunting look ever day, only for it to increasingly get more grave with each passing hour? Bill could feel the fear rolling off Laura's skin, he too worried about Pandora, but at least one of them had to focus on the fleet for now.

The rest of the conversation had went by in a breeze for Laura, who found herself unable to focus on anything - or anyone - other than her daughter. Bill was right, it was a mother's prerogative to worry, but Laura found herself unable to focus on her duties as President. Perhaps it was down to the daunting feeling of dread that filled the very depths of her stomach? She watched silently as Bill, Kara and Lee plotted their route to the algea planet, moving the miniature scaled vipers and ships across the map as they planned their battle strategy. She couldn't help but wonder if they would ever get a break - for even a day, where they didn't have to worry about being pounced on by the cylons, running out of their basic necessities like water or being faced with a prophecy that they no longer seemed to be able to fulfill. A day was all she wanted.

As the Admiral and President were left alone once more, Laura glanced at the clock in the right hand corner of the dimly lit room. It had been three hours. Three hours since they had left Pandora off at daycare. Laura silently kicked herself. The child had never been left alone for longer than an hour and a half at a time, with either herself, Bill or Tory picking her up after that time. The Lords of Kobol only knew what thoughts must have run through Pandora's poor mind. "Pandora" Laura said, annoyance for her lack of thinking laced her voice as she headed towards the nearest route to the daycare. One of the many benefits of spending extended periods of time on Galactica was that she now knew the ship like the back of her hand. Bill was quick to follow her, walking almost on her heels as they turned the corner to the daycare.

Laura wasn't sure what she had expected - but it certainly wasn't that. In the back corner of the room, Pandora had pressed herself up against the wall, barricading herself with firm pillows and plastic chairs on either side of her small body, in a desperate attempt to block out the other children and adults around her, the girl had curled herself up in a small ball shape, with her head buried in her knees as her arms locked around her lower legs, holding them tightly against her chest. Exchanging a troubled look, the pair advanced towards the anxious child. "Pandora?" Laura spoke, her voice soft and gentle as she lowered herself onto the floor beside the distraught girl. As though in a state of disbelief, the girl raised her head to look up at the source of the noise. "I thought you weren't coming back!" Pandora protested, her eyes swollen and tinted red from her tears as she ran her fingers under her button nose as she sniffled, her beloved elephant held tightly against her chest.

"What did I tell you?" Laura asked, reaching out to touch the girl's arm as Bill lowered himself down next to her, cautious of how exactly he was going to get back up again. "You'll always come back" Pandora pondered for a moment before speaking, her waterworks coming to an end as she remembered her mother's earlier words of comfort. "Didn't we?" She asked, feeling as though she was slipping back into a teaching role. Pandora had to learn that both she and Bill were not going to just up and leave her, and that they would always come back for her, no matter what - even if Laura wanted nothing more than to scoop the child up and rock her off to sleep with a false promise that it'll never happen again. Regardless of that, Pandora had to learn.

The girl nodded her head at her mother's words. Moving the pillow nearest to her, she retrieved the item hidden underneath for safe keeping."I made you something" Pandora revealed, her damp eyes looked up at Bill for the first time as she held the thread bracelet out for the older man to take. The three strings were braided through each other with such precision that Bill doubted that it was Pandora who had made such a piece. Her colour choices stood out. The red was the same shade as Laura's infamous New Caprica outfit, while the navy blue reminded him of his own colonial uniform, with the third thread of lavender being Pandora's favourite colour. Had the child consciously chosen such colours? From the ground beside her, Pandora produced a second bracelet, identical to that of Bill's and held it out for her mother. "For you to" She said, her voice low and weak as she patted her porcelain cheeks that were covered in a blanket of tears.

After examining the bracelet in detail, Bill loosened the threads for a moment to slip it over his burly wrist before tightening it once again, receiving a nod of approval from Pandora. Reaching forward, Laura moved to lift the child away from the cold, grey wall and into the safety of her welcoming arms. At once the girl clung to her, burying her head in Laura's neck, with her small fingers gripping the pure silk material of her mother's blouse. "She'll be fine after she rests for a while" Laura thought aloud, seeing the concern and worry coat the man's aging skin. It was Bill's sense of duty that stopped him from following the mother and child out of the daycare. He had a duty to the fleet, to ensure that this mission was successful, and locking himself away in his quarters with no one but Laura and Pandora for company was going to achieve nothing at all. Setting off in the opposite direction, Bill made his way towards the CIC, calmed and comforted in the knowledge that both Pandora and Laura were on Galactica if anything should happen.

It was never easy to see a comrade in such a state, even more so someone as young, healthy and determined as Kat. In recent months, she had seemed to naturally slip into the space in his life once allocated for Kara. He entered the sterile room after the blonde viper pilot with a heavy heart, filled with regret, remorse and sorrow. How had he not seen the path of self-destruction that Kat was following?

"Are you staying?" Kat said, her voice laced with uncertainty as it shook with each sharp intake of air. "Oh, I'm staying" Bill confirmed, his voice filled with self-assurance and determination as he lifted the metal chair from the corner of the room and lowered it down next to Kat's rigid eggshell white hospital bed. Kat couldn't deny the disbelief that ran through her, her frail and weak fingers clasping around the vial of sleeping pills. Bill leaned forward in his chair, folding his worn hands together as he raised his head to look at the woman who appeared childlike and vulnerable on her death-bed.

"The sick bay reminds me of where my son Zak was born. Caroline was so happy..." He couldn't help but remember the beaming smile that had graced his ex wife's features that day, finding his own lips curling up at the mental image. "She was convinced - both times - that she was having a girl, so it was a surprise at the end." Bill confessed to the woman, regardless of the fact that Bill would never have changed anything about either of his sons, he had always felt that a hole in his life had never been filled.

"Did you want a girl?" Kat asked, her numb blackened cheeks flinching as she attempted to force some form of a smile. Regardless of the rumors she had heard floating around the fleet, Kat had always suspected that Bill had been an extraordinary father; you only had to look at him with Pandora to see that. "Yeah" He said, feeling a ping of sadness as he began to fidget with his hands absent-mindedly, glancing down at the thread bracelet that graced his wrist, a constant reminder of the daughter figure in his life. "Three's a good round number" Bill admitted, having always wanted three children, though by the time that his youngest son was born, his marriage was already beyond the point of no return - not even the Lords of Kobol could have saved it.

As her thick eyelashes fluttered under the weight of her eyelids, Kat nodded her head in a feeble manner."You have Pandora now" She whispered, her eyes falling for a moment before she forced them open again, struggling to keep herself awake. While he may have mentally connected Pandora as the 'daughter figure' in his life, a space once occupied by Kara, Kat was the first to bring the matter up in conversation. Did he want to raise a third child? In these uncertain circumstances, with no clear sign of tomorrow and a fearful prophecy to contend with?

"Yes, I do" Bill accepted without much more consideration. Pandora was his daughter, perhaps not in blood or name, but he cared about her unconditionally, and that was all that mattered. Though, he couldn't shake the fear that lay deep inside him. He couldn't put his finger on it. The wind was changing, he could feel it in his very bones. Whatever it was however, the man was confident of one thing; he would protect Pandora, as well as Laura, till his dying breath, regardless of when that faithful day may come.


	8. The Eye of Jupiter

"Let her sleep Bill!" Laura hissed, crossing the room as Bill remained at his station, protectively watching over the sleeping child in his bunk, taking in each rise and fall of her small chest. "She looks peaceful" Bill concluded, finding the corners of his thin lips starting to turn up in a joyful smile. Pandora looked as though she hadn't a single care in the world - her innocence making her ignorant to the devils around her. "If you don't let her sleep, then you can deal with Miss Moody" Laura joked, sitting herself down on the man's chair as she flashed him a teasing smile. It was no secret that Pandora could be rather moody if awoken from her peaceful slumbers. "Fair point" He replied, nodding his head towards the woman as the phone beside them let out a shrilling ring, demanding the attention of the occupants of the room. Fearful that the noise might wake the sleeping child, Laura lifted the phone from its cradle after the first ring. "This is the President speaking..." She began, glancing over her glasses at Bill as he leaned against the wall in front of her, looking between both herself and the sleeping child.

"Do you really think you found the Temple of the Five?" Laura asked, her voice filled with wonder as she placed the phone on loud-speaker, hoping Pandora would be able to sleep through the noise. Bill crossed his arms, watching at the phone as Tyrol's voice sounded around the room. He listened as the younger man recalled his father's teaching, causing Laura to nod her head in silent acknowledgement. "Could this place be related to the Eye of Jupiter?" Laura thought aloud, looking up at Bill as she silently prayed at this was a much-needed marker on their path to Earth - or at least some sign that the prophecy was true. That the dying leader would guide the people to Earth. "The Eye of Jupiter, what exactly are we talking about?" Bill asked, his voice laced in curiosity as he stopped in front of his desk, looking down at Laura. "According to the scriptures, it's a marker that was left by the thirteenth tribe, it's supposed to point the way to Earth" Laura informed the Admiral, deciding that it might be best to teach him about the scrolls and scriptures someday.

The sirens boomed through the Admiral's quarters. The shrilling noise forced Pandora out of her peaceful slumber as Laura stood to her full height while Bill clasped the telephone in his hand. That noise only meant one thing. Cylons. "This is Adama" The man said, switching the phone network over to the CIC. Laura slipped around the desk and moved towards the bunk in the side of the room where Pandora was attempting to adjust her eyes to the dim light. "What's the matter?" Pandora asked, her tired voice concealed a yawn as she rubbed her eyes - struggling to keep them open - while sitting up straight in bed. "We need to go to the CIC" Laura stated, knowing it was best not to unnecessarily worry the small child. "Do we have to go...?" Pandora argued, a tired yawn breaking off the rest of her speech as Laura stepped forward to scoop the girl up in her arms; blanket, elephant and all.

Pandora clutched her fingers around the thin material of her mother's blazer, keeping her head against the woman's shoulder as they walked after Bill through Galactica's deserted hallways and towards the chaos of the CIC. "Zip rep!" Bill demanded as they stepped inside, the Admiral heading towards the middle station while Laura slipped into the empty work station at the back of the chaotic room. By now, Pandora had grown accustomed to the thin grey walls of the CIC. As Laura sat her down on the cold metal chair, Pandora swung her legs backwards and forwards, keeping her parents in her line of sight as Laura walked up behind Bill, coming to a stop at his hip. "Four?" Laura asked in disbelief as her eyes gazed up at the flashing blue and red lights on the monitors in front of them. Why were the cylons always right on their tails?

"If the Eye of Jupiter really is a marker on the way to Earth and it's in that tomb..." She began, her eyes trailing over to the man beside her, knowing that the cylon presence meant only one thing. They wanted the Eye of Jupiter "We can't let the cylons get it" Bill concluded, examining the four base ship on the monitor as he attempted to come up with a mental stagey. They had to many people on the surface, and the Eye of Jupiter was to valuable for them to simply jump away.

The Admiral and President exchanged a puzzled glance as the cylons attempted contact with the Galactica ship. Lifting the wireless beside him, Bill pressed down the communication button before speaking "This is Admiral Adama" He announced, curious of just who was on the other end. "Admiral, I can't tell you what a genuine pleasure it is to hear your voice" The familiar voice filled the CIC, sending the occupants into a sudden silence. Bill watched as the colour drained from Laura's face as their fears were confirmed. "This is Gaius Baltar" The man revealed, his voice sending confusion through the Galactica crew.

The look on her mother's face puzzled Pandora. She had never seen a look of such terror in her mother's eyes, masking her features as she took a deep shaky breath. As though the memories of New Caprica were vividly flashing back to her. It made Pandora afraid. The girl had been of the belief that nothing in the world could scare her mother, but in that moment, Laura's blood boiled with fear, anger and vengeance. All she wanted was Baltar's head on a silver plate.

As her mother turned on her heel and exited the room, her powerful strides caused her heels to echo through the deserted hallways like a woman on a mission. Bill was quick to follow the President, mindful that she wouldn't think twice about using the services of the nearest airlock. Pandora pushed herself off the chair, her arms filled with her cotton blanket and precious elephant, as she rushed after Laura and Bill. Eventually, the child managed to catch up with them both, slipping through the small gap of the heavy wooden door before it shut behind her.

Laura was Pandora's 'comforter in chief' but in that moment, it seemed her mother was the one in need of comfort. "I can't believe we're letting Cylons on this ship" Laura muttered, shaking her head in defeat. Stepping up behind the woman, Pandora reached up to touch her mother's porcelain hand. "Mama..." She said, her voice filled with concern for her mother. The title had caught both Laura and Bill off guard, with the latter forcing himself not to smirk like an idiot and spin the child around in joy. Though given the current circumstances, Bill doubted that was appropriate. Laura found herself smiling freely, even with the unexpected unfolding of events.

"Everything's okay" She promised the child, before a realisation hit her. The last thing Laura wanted - or needed - was for Pandora to be in the same room as Baltar, let alone with known cylon models. "Can you take Pandora..." Laura began to speak to the armed guard nearest them when the doors opened and an escort of heavily armed guards marched into the room, accompanying the two cylons and the traitor of the human race.

"Laura" Baltar's voice was soft as though he was in a state of disbelief as he stepped into the meeting room, his eyes landing on the red-haired President, speaking to her as though she was a long-lost friend and not a bitter enemy. Unable to look the traitor in the eyes, Laura found her hands reaching behind her to gently push Pandora back, the woman herself following as Bill took three strides to stand between the President and her predecessor. "It's good to see you" Baltar said, attempting to coax the woman in front of him. It was then that he spotted the small child hiding behind Laura's legs, looking up at him with curious widen bambi eyes as she rested her head against Laura's thigh. The President still could not bring herself to look at the man, deciding to look at the Galactica symbol at the other end of the tense boardroom. She would not give the traitor the satisfaction of looking her in the eyes.

"It seems you and the Admiral have certainly been busy" Baltar attempted to break the awkward, tense silence as he looked from the President to her Admiral. His attempt at a friendly conversation was taken as a hostile threat. Laura moved to step in front of her daughter like a lioness protecting her cub. While the wrinkles on Bill's forehead became more clear as he forced himself not to knock the light straight out of Baltar. "I guess it was only a matter of time before we had an Adama-Roslin on board" He joked, taking all of his courage to smile at the man and woman- attempting to be civil with them. It took every ounce of Laura's self-control to stop her personally throwing Baltar out of the nearest airlock. Oh, the satisfaction that would have given her. Speaking to her as though the events of New Caprica were only a simple nightmare may have been one thing, but he had went a step too far by mentioning Pandora. Though, it seemed Bill was annoyed enough for both of them as he took a stride forward and towered over the shorter, younger man. "I would watch your tongue if I was you, Baltar" Bill threatened, narrowing his eyes as he glared down the end of his nose at the younger man.

Out of the corner of her eye, Laura could see the blonde cylon watching Pandora with intense curiosity, as though puzzled by the seemingly familiar girl. The cylon's behavior was enough to make Laura's blood boil and for an ever-present shiver of fear to run down her spine. "Weapons are hardly necessary - especially with the child in the room" D'Anna spoke, forcing a fake smile as she looked from the President to the child she was guarding. There was something strangely familiar about Pandora, as though she had seen the child before, but D'Anna simply couldn't place her finger on why. "Yes, exactly" The male cylon spoke, nodding his head as he followed his companion's line of sight to the young child who clutched fearfully to her mother's legs, cautiously of the strangers watching her. "We come in peace" He claimed, though the sarcasm in his voice was evident to everyone in the room.

"What do you want?" Laura finally spoke, her tone sharp as she looked directly at the two cylons. "We want the Eye of Jupiter" The three confessed, as though she was simply talking about the weather as she placed her hand against the crisp white material of her dress. "We know you have people on the ground, and we know you found the original settlement of the thirteenth tribe" She revealed, casually shrugging her shoulders as though the humans were an unworthy enemy to the 'almighty' cylon race. "And it doesn't take much to know that the only reason you haven't cut your losses and jumped away by now is that you found the artifact but haven't been able to retrieve it yet. Is that about right, Madame President?" Cavil spoke, his accusing tone turning to sarcasm once more as he mocked the woman's title. "We have our people on the surface, we're not leaving them behind" Laura argued with determination, they had learned from their mistake on New Caprica; now, no one got left behind. "That's a touching but not very convincing idea" Cavil confessed, his eyes glancing at the armed guards who seemed to take a small step closer at his hostile words.

Baltar attempted to speak once more, but in Laura's mind the sound of his voice was like sharp nails being dragged down a black board. Unnecessary, painful and provoking. She shut her eyes and attempted to block the noise - and the man - out of her head. She would not take advice from a traitor. "The less this man says, the better this will go" Laura informed, continuing to ignore the man's presence, looking directly at the blonde haired woman who had yet to take her eyes off both herself and Pandora.

"If it wasn't for me, the cylons would have blown you out of the skies two seconds after you arrived...!" He began to argue, holding his hands out in front of him as a sign of his desperation to be understood by the President and her Admiral. Seeing as the man's lacking negotiation skills were getting them no where, the three attempted to intervene. As the female cylon moved to advance towards them, Laura turned around and in one swift motion lifted her daughter and placed the child on her hip furthest from their visitors, shielding her from the curious gazes of the one and three. "Do you think you can handle this without me - if you can stomach it?" Laura asked, her voice laced with sarcasm as she clutched her daughter to her side before turning on her heel "So I've saved your life - again. How many times is that now, because I'm beginning to lose count!" The man shouted as Laura headed out of the room, allowing the door to slam shut behind her as she left, leaving the cylon ally standing gobsmacked.

Laura had no intention of staying in that room for a minute longer. Not in the presence of a cylon whom seemed a little too interested in Pandora, or the traitor who had walked so many of their kind to their untimely brutal deaths. Bill could deal with it.

"There's really not much more on the eye in these scriptures" Laura spoke as she felt the man's presence as he entered his quarters some time later, her eyes remaining fixed on the paperback book in her hands. "There's several interesting stories about the temple, listen to this 'five pillars of the temple were fashioned after the five whose names could not be named'..." She said, reading the black text that rest on the crisp white page with intense interest; perhaps it held a clue about the thirteenth tribe or their path on the way to Earth?

"Laura" Bill interrupted her as he rested his hands down on the desk between them. Laura knew that voice all too well. Something had happened. "What?" She asked, finally pulling her eyes away from the scriptures, shutting the book as she looked up at the Admiral with growing concern, her breath catching in her throat.

"The cylon we know as Boomer, arrived with the others, she told our Sharon that her child was alive, and that she was on board one of the cylon base ships," Bill revealed, his voice dangerously low as he spoke in a sense of disbelief, praying to the Lords of Kobol that what Boomer had said was not true. Laura felt a sense of relief wash over her like a wave. "And that she had been seen on New Caprica in your school" Bill's voice became accusing, his eyebrow raising as he leaned down against his hands, attempting to stay calm. Surely Laura had a reasonable explanation for this all? Laura looked down at the desk, feeling the corners of her lips flinch up in an unreserved smile, taking off her dark rimmed glasses, Laura pushed a strand of thick fire kissed hair behind her ear as she pursed her lips "The child is alive" She breathed, unable to believe her own words. There was no denying that she had become rather attached with Hera, after all, she had seen the child almost every day on New Caprica, even coming to see her as a 'niece' figure in her life. She couldn't deny her relief that the child was alive. Bill's eyes widened in shock, dreading what the woman may say next.

"Yes" Laura said, nodding her head as she put her glasses back on. "Yes, the child was at the school. Yes, I kept her there, we suspected that the cylons captured her during the exodus from New Caprica. Yes it's true" Laura confessed her secret, her eyes silently pleading with the man in front of her to understand, to see her point of view, to not hate her for her past choices.

Bill lowered himself down into the chair beside him, unable to believe his ears. Could his Laura commit such a selfish act? Could she have knowingly deprived a set of parents from raising their first-born child? "Listen, the thing you might want to know is that when..." Laura began, reaching out to take the man's hand in a bid to get him to understand. The decision hadn't been easy, but it had to be made, for the sake of the fleet. She had no other choice. Unable to listen to the woman's web of lies, Bill stood from his seat to leave the room, stopping in his tracks when he noticed the silent Pandora sitting on the plush chair at the corner of the room, happily flicking through one of his worn out hardbacks. Turning on his heel, he faced Laura once more; his face masked with disbelief, anger and

'What if it had of been our Pandora?" Bill demanded in a harsh tone, his fist clenching as he tried to control his anger, mindful of Pandora's presence in the room. "Our Pandora isn't a cylon" Laura began to argued, rising from Bill's chair as she pushed the palm of her ivory hands against the walnut desk, sensing an oncoming storm brewing. "They thought their daughter was dead!' Bill exclaimed, unable to believe that Laura had committed such a crime against Helo and Athena. He knew all too well the unbearable pain of losing a child. He wouldn't wish that on his worse enemy. "You're missing the point Laura! What if someone had taken Pandora from us? Frak, what if someone faked her death?" He protested, annoyance lacing his tone as he attempted to make the President see his point of view. He watched as the woman's face became masked with pain, agony and fear - clearly he had hit a nerve with her. The child in question looked up worriedly at her parents from her safe spot in the corner of the room.

"Bill..." Laura began, her voice dropping as she sighed to herself. Perhaps that was what Laura feared most? The nightmare of someone taking Pandora from them both - snatching her away, leaving both herself and Bill helpless to protect the child. Just like she had done to Athena and Helo. "You're a mother, Laura. Put yourself in Athena's shoes" Bill glared at the woman before him, without even glancing at the fearful Pandora, the man turned on his heel and left, slamming the door shut behind him with a sharp bang. Laura jumped out of her skin at the noise, shutting her eyes as she brought her ivory hand up to cover her fast beating heart. She hadn't expected such a reaction from Bill, in fact, she couldn't deny the crystal droplets tears that were beginning to form in the corner of her eyes.

The patter of small footsteps sounded around the room as Pandora stopped in front of the tearful President. "Mama, why is Papa angry?" Pandora asked, her voice full of innocence and ignorance. Laura felt a sob catch in her throat, forcing her to shut her eyes. Being called 'Mama' brought it all back to her, the realisation of what she had done. Bill was right, what if someone had taken Pandora from them? Laura doubted that she would have been able to go on, not without the dotting, charismatic child in her life. She was a mother now. Though she had been the puppet master of every mother's worst nightmare. She had willingly taken Hera from her parents, without a second thought. She had taken Hera from the only people in the universe who loved her unconditionally.

"Mama?" Pandora asked once more, her voice growing fearful as she tugged gently on the end of her mother's blazer, standing up on her tip toes to do so. Laura blinked away her tears as she bent down to her daughter's height, taking the girl's small hands in her own. "Everything's okay" She promised again, telling yet another lie to her precious ward. The girl raised her eyebrow in a way that reminded Laura of Bill, that simple fact was enough to force her tears away.

Laura took her time walking through the hallways of Galactica, Pandora walking in step with her, clutching onto her hand as they walked. The child could always sense when something was wrong - and although she couldn't understand it, she knew something horrible had happened. By the time the pair had arrived in the CIC, the atmosphere in the cold, chilly room was tense and fearful. As the echoing of her heels came to a stop, Bill turned around to look at her. His expression softened as he saw the slight redness around the woman's tired eyes. He could never stay angry at Laura for long - regardless of what she had done.

Walking through the tense silence of the CIC, Laura came to a stop beside Bill, her eyes glued to the monitors that flashed crimson red. She had always been able to read Bill like an open book. The scene displayed on the monitors and the dreading, fearful look on the Admiral's face told her everything she needed to know. Reaching out, she slipped her slender ivory fingers through his burly arm, letting them rest against the soft material of his uniform, as her other hand rested on Pandora's small shoulder. With a simple nod of her head, she gave the Admiral all the confirmation he needed.

"Release of the nuclear weapons is now autorised" Bill announced, his tone monotonous as he kept his eyes fixed on Laura as Tigh lifted the lever as the countdown began. Laura squeezed the man's arm softly, giving him the reassurance that what he was doing was the right thing - regardless of the consequences. In that moment, he realised that the impossible situation he had found himself in, was no different from what Laura had been faced with when Hera was born. He brought his free hand up to brush the tips of his fingers against Laura's porcelain knuckles. Whatever happened next, he knew one thing for sure. Laura would be right by his side - every step of the way. For better or worse.


	9. Rapture

Pandora could sense the tension in the room.

Both between Bill and Laura, and the officers. “Disable launching warhead safety” Bill announced, looking at the younger officer as he gave his order. Laura turned her head away from the man, unable to believe that he was going to risk the members of the fleet on the surface - including Lee. What happened to the idea that they left no one behind? Reaching down, she rested her hand on the crown of Pandora’s head, the small child resting her head down against her mother’s leg, looking fearfully up at her father.

"Saul, please input your firing code" Bill spoke, his voice calm, slow and steady as he gave his next order. Laura shut her eyes for a short moment, praying to the Lords of Kobol that Bill knew what he was doing - even more so, that he knew the consequences. Would he really risk Lee and Kara’s lives? As Saul handed over the key, Laura glanced down at her daughter, feeling Pandora’s arms wrap in a deadlock around her leg. It seemed even Pandora knew what was going to occur could have deadly consequences. "Fire on my mark" Bill ordered, his voice monotonous as he looked towards the monitors. Laura’s eyes widened then, her breathing becoming slower as her mind raced to the worst case scenario. How many of their people were down there? There was more than just Lee and Kara. Though, would Bill ever be able to forgive himself if he played a part in the death of another of his children?

"Sir, the radars are turning back" Gaeta announced, giving Laura a momentary sense of relief. "Not all of them" Bill observed, his eyes fixed on the monitors above. "All but one" Gaeta confirmed, turning around to face the Admiral and the President. Bill couldn’t release a nuclear weapon on account of one cylon raptor?

Laura turned to face the man beside her, reaching out to touch the side of his elbow. The room filled with silence, each occupant of room anxious to hear the Admiral’s next move.”Safety on. Close outer doors” He ordered, resting his hands on the cold metal bar in front of him. Laura silently thanked the Lords of Kobol for the small mercy that had been gifted to them.

Laura pursed her lips as she watched the medics carry the lifeless body out of the pilot’s private quarters. “Wait outside” Bill requested, looking at the two armed guards who accompanied the President, as the men left, Laura glanced towards the splash of blood that decorated the navy walls. “Sharon’s downloading into another body onboard the cylon ship now, isn’t she?” Laura asked, already knowing the answer. However, the man before her couldn’t bring himself to look at her as she spoke. “She begged me” Helo admitted, attempting to keep his emotions at bay as he kept his eyes fixed on the door in front of him. Bill couldn’t help but think he would have done the same in Helo’s situation. If given half a chance to get Zak back, he would have taken it in a heart beat.

"Gods, if you…seen the look in her eyes…" Helo recalled, his mind flashing back to his wife’s pleading eyes. "She has important information on her defenses" Bill interrupted the pilot, knowing it was best to treat the situation like any other. "Codes, procedures, the tactical situation down on the planets surface. The cylons have access to all of that as well" Bill listed off, knowing what a woman like Athena could be capable of with a vendetta against the fleet - in particular the President. "She won’t betray us" Helo assured, his face contracting with anger. "You know that, it’s why you gave her the uniform" He reminded them, the bridge of his nose tightening as he struggled to keep his cool. "She may not have a choice" Bill concluded, looking down at the younger man.

"She’ll get Hera and she’ll come back" Helo demanded, still unable to look at either the President or the Admiral. "That’s rather a leap of faith you’ve made their captain. If it involved your family only, I would have said it was brave" Laura spoke, bringing the attention of the room to herself again, sounding like a teacher scolding her student for his misbehavior. "You’ve put the entire fleet in jeopardy, are you aware of that?" She asked, noticing the tears that were beginning to form in the corner of the man’s eyes.

Helo stood from his seat, unable to hold his tongue. “If you hadn’t lied and stolen our baby in the first place. We wouldn’t be here at all” He admitted, just looking at the woman made his blood boil. Bill feared the man may say something that he would later regret.

"You surround Pandora with guards! Where were the guards when you stole my daughter? We can’t get more than four feet beside your daughter, yet you could fake our daughter’s death?” Helo argued, stepping towards the shorter petite woman as his anger began to boil over. Pandora and Hera were proof of the hierarchy in the fleet; with the President and Admiral sitting at the very top on their metaphorical thrones. No one other than the Admiral or the President’s aides could get within hearing distance of the President’s daughter, yet it had been seen as ‘justifiable’ for the President to fake his daughter’s death and ship her off to another woman to raise. Where was the justice in that?

Bill reached out to touch the man’s chest, stopping him from towering over the President. While he trusted Helo, there was no telling what the man could do when filled with wrath and hatred towards Laura. “We wouldn’t be in this mess if it wasn’t for you, Madame President” Helo concluded, glaring down at the older woman before he turned on his heel and headed to the other end of the room, his hands coming to rest on the back of his head. The tears began to spill over, slipping down his hard cheeks.

Laura stood in silence then, as though recalling her actions on the faithful day of Hera’s birth. The child had saved her life, and what had she done? Taken Hera from her parents for the ‘good of the fleet’. Though, she wasn’t a mother then. If it had all happened again, her actions would have been different. She never would have taken Hera.

"I certainly played my part in bringing us to this moment and there is plenty of blame to throw around and I accept it, and now all of our lives are in the hands of Sharon Agathon, and all we can do is hope that your wife is worthy of the unconditional trust you place in her captain," Laura accepted her guilt and her role in the day’s events, but Sharon could tell the cylons everything they needed to blow Galactica and the fleet out of the sky. "and you as well, Admiral" She turned to look from Helo to Bill, though she was greeted by another silence. Throwing a final glance at Bill, who stood with his back to her, Laura turned on her heel and headed out of the pilot’s quarters.

It hadn’t taken Bill long to figure out where Laura was. His quarters. Her second home. Shutting the hatch door behind him, he stepped into the dimly lit room, his eyes searching out the figure in the shadows. “I knew I’d find you here” Bill said, reaching out to flick on the light nearest to the sofa as Laura looked up at him. It was then he noticed something - or rather someone - was missing. “Where’s Pandy?” He asked, shocked to not see the child who had become Laura’s permanent shadow.

"Tori’s bringing her down from daycare" Laura replied absent-mindedly, staring at the wall of photographs across from her, acting as though she was interested in them. Heading over to the coffee table, Bill lifted the glass bottle and poured the strong-smelling bourbon into his whiskey glass. The smell filling the room around them. "Can you blame them for how they reacted?" Bill wondered, clasping the half full glass of bourbon as he looked absent-mindedly into the liquid. Taking a sip, he allowed it to burn the back of his throat before he gazed up to study Laura as she walked across the room towards him.

"What would you have done - had the roles been reversed and Pandora was Hera?" Laura asked, her curiosity getting the better of her as she sat herself down on the sofa beside him. Bill sat in silence for a moment, allowing his mind to imagine the situation - if he had have been Helo, Laura as Athena and their Pandora as Hera. It was the foundations of his worse nightmares. He had lost Zac and came close to doing so with Lee on countless occasions - could he really go through that roller-coaster with Pandora? He doubted it.

His conclusion was a simple one. “I wouldn’t have stopped until I found her, regardless of any man, woman or cylon that tried to stop me” Bill explained, trying to push the nightmare to the back of his mind as he slipped his arm around the woman’s back, watching as she dropped her head against his shoulder. He could sense the fear running through Laura’s bones as she crossed her arms and turned herself towards him.

Bringing his hand to rest on her shoulder, his fingers curled around her fire kissed hair in an attempt to comfort her. “Nothing is going to happen to our Pandora” He promised with a whisper, hoping for the first time, he was making a promise he could keep. “How can you be so sure?” She wondered, her heart pounding in her chest as she shut her eyes for a moment. Not even Bill’s comforting embrace could lessen her fears.

"I have this horrible feeling, and I can’t shift it at all. It’s like oncoming storm" Laura confessed, remembering how that feeling had returned when the cylons had arrived in the meeting room. Mother’s had a sixth sense when it came to protecting their children, and the way the three watched them was enough to heighten Laura’s fears by ten folds.

Bill had made many false promises in his life. To love his wife for better or for worse and to protect the fleet against the cylons. Those were at least two of the false promises he had broken. “Whatever it is, I promise, I won’t let any harm come to a single hair on her head” He said, nodding his head to acknowledge the promise he had made the President.

As though her ears had been burning, the hatch door opened cautiously, a small head appearing through it, examining the room slowly in search of its occupants. “Papa!” Pandora exclaimed, pushing the hatch door back fully as she darted into the room, running as fast as her short legs could carry her towards the pair of the sofa. “Speak of the devil” Bill joked, earning a charismatic smile from Laura as he held his arms open in a welcoming embrace as the child rushed towards him, wrapping her arms around his neck as he lifted her up onto his knee.

Pandora seemed perplexed by something. Reaching out, she took ahold of Bill’s wrist and turned it around as though searching for something. “Your bracelet?” She asked, looking up at Bill with confusion masking her eyes. “Over beside the bunk” Bill answered, sitting back on the sofa as he pointed towards his night stand. Pandora leaned forward on her father’s knee, almost falling off as she tried to spot the braided bracelet across the room. “I see it!” She proclaimed happily before settling back down against her father’s chest, looking up amusingly at Laura.

Laura raised an eyebrow whenever the child yawned loudly, covering her mouth with her hand as her eyes closed slightly, her head coming to rest against Bill’s chest. “I think someone’s tired” The President beamed, getting a silent protest in the manner of a head shake from Pandora. “I’m not!” Laura mumbled, the rest of her speech coming out inaudible against the yawn the left her soft lips. The young girl buried her head against the soft material of her father’s shirt, shutting her eyes as she did so. “You can stay here if you wish” Bill offered, turning to glance at Laura. After all, Pandora was half asleep as it was. Shaking her head softly, Laura sighed. “We haven’t been on Colonial One as much, and the last thing we need is another set of rumors flying around the fleet” She revealed, earning a nod of acknowledgement from Bill. While he often played ‘dumb’ to the rumors running around, he was well aware of their existence; especially those regarding Pandora.

Standing up, Bill readjusted the child in his arms. His heart dropped when the phone rang. “It’s okay, take the call. I’ll carry Pandora back to the raptor” Laura said, reaching out for the child, who muttered and protested at being separated from the man. As Bill disappeared into his office to answer the shrilling ring of the wireless, Laura made her way towards the hatch door.

Colonial One seemed foreign to her now. It failed to hold the comfort and warmth that embraced her the moment she would step into Bill’s quarters - it no longer felt like home. Pandora dragged her feet behind her as she headed through the compartments of Colonial One, pulling herself onto the leather coffee toned sofa as she crossed her arms and held her blanket close against her chest. It seemed Pandora no longer enjoyed Colonial One either.

"When can we go back to Galactica?" Pandora asked, bringing her legs up against her chest as she looked up at her mother with pleading eyes, seeming out of place in the Presidential Office of Colonial One. Though there was only so long that the President could spend away from Colonial One before rumors would start running around the fleet. Not that they weren’t already. "In the morning" Laura revealed as she lowered herself down onto the plush leather seat behind her writing desk, her eyes remaining on the anxious child. "I wanna see, Papa!" The girl protested, her eyes coated with a blanket of tears as she buried her head down into her blanket.

Laura should have known this was going to happen. They had been spending too much time on Galactica, and according to Tori, it wasn’t going unnoticed. “He’s very busy, Pandy” She said, hoping to calm the child down. Pandora sniffled away her tears as she slipped off the high leather sofa, moving towards her mother’s desk. “You go too?” Pandora muttered, looking on the brick of a breakdown as she looked up at her mother with anxious, fearful eyes. “I’m not going anywhere, you know that” She reminded the child, reaching out to stroke her thin chocolate-brown hair. Perhaps Laura wasn’t the only one with a fear? Anytime either she or Bill left the girl, she would automatically fear the worst. Could she blame her? In a time where the cylons could shoot them out of the sky at any minute, and with Gaius frakking Baltar being alive to make matters even worse.

It was sometime later that Laura came to the conclusion that attempting to do paperwork with a child on her knee was not the best of ideas. Pandora had curled herself up into her right arm, restricting Laura’s movement of her writing hand. Just as the woman gave up on her task, she could hear the steady rising and falling of Pandora’s chest as her breathing leveled out. Leaning back in her chair, Laura took a moment of unusual silence to examine the child in her arms. Was her constant fear related to the cylons? The one and three models had looked at her as though she was a simple experiment. What would the cylons want with Pandora? Even if she was connected to the President and Admiral of the fleet, and by extension both the political system and the military…it still didn’t explain the cylons reaction to the child.

Pushing the dreaded thoughts to the very back of her troublesome mind, Laura stood up from her chair, careful not to wake the sleeping child as she walked towards the cots in the next compartment of Colonial One, their makeshift private quarters. Placing the child gently down onto the cot, Laura could feel Pandora’s grip on her arm tightening - even in her sleep - preventing the President from leaving her side. Sighing deeply, Laura bent down and slipped into the cot beside Pandora. At once the child relaxed in her sleep, her tense shoulders dropping as she instinctively turned towards her mother’s side, allowing the woman to wrap her arms protectively around her.

Laura looked up as she heard footsteps behind the curtain, her worries disappeared through when a familiar figure stepped into the dimly lit room. “Pity Pandora wasn’t awake” She admitted, hearing the light chuckle from their visitor as he dropped himself down on the chair next to their cot. “How is she?” Bill asked, leaning forward in his seat as he clasped his hands in front of him.

"I think she’s missing Galactica already, she was asking to go and see you" Laura confessed, her head rested against the firm pillow as she looked up at the man, her lips turning up in a gentle smile. "I came to tell you that Athena’s brought Hera back" Relief flooded over Laura at the news. Hera was safe. Hera was with her parents again - where she truly belonged. "I’d like to see her" Laura confessed, uncertain that her request would be fulfilled. After all, she had been responsible for Hera’s separation from her parents - the last thing Helo and Athena wanted was her anywhere near their child. "I’ll see what I can do" Bill agreed, nodding his head as he reached out to take the woman’s hand that rested against her hip. "And there’s something else…" Bill began, earning an uncertain look from Laura as raised her eyebrow, her fingers slipping through the man’s larger ones as she anxiously waited for his next piece of news. "Baltar’s in the brig" He announced, the room falling as silent as a graveyard.

It was Laura who broke the silence. “You best seal the airlocks, they might just come in useful” She admitted, her blood boiling at the very mention of the man’s name. Bill moved forward on his seat, clasping the woman’s smaller hands with both of his as he looked straight into her eyes. “Don’t worry about Baltar tonight, just sleep - we’ll deal with him and Hera in the morning.” He assured her, after all, there was nothing they could do tonight - not with Baltar out cold on the floor of the brig. “I’ve never been so tired” Laura confessed, feeling as though every bone in body was tired beyond the point of exhaustion.

"Get some sleep Laura" Bill requested, seeing the dark circles that had gradually started to form under her porcelain skin as he stood up from his seat. Leaning down, he brought his hand to cradle Pandora’s head, his fingers resting against her soft hair as he pressed a kiss against Laura’s forehead, the woman shutting her eyes peacefully as he did so. "Now, sleep" He said, pulling away as the President opened her eyes hesitantly "Aye, aye, Admiral" She joked with a gentle chuckle, mindful of the sleeping child in her arms as Bill headed back through the compartment, turning around to take in the scene before him. It was astonishing how youthful someone could look - and feel - without having to carry a heavy burden on their shoulders anymore. Laura no longer had to keep the secret about Hera from him. Though he feared that this was the calm before the storm. Bill’s instincts were never wrong. He had sensed a shift in the air before the fall of the twelve colonies, he had felt a hole in his heart the moment Zak had boarded that viper and he had known something was terribly wrong when the fleet settled on New Caprica. He had failed to stop the inevitable on those three occasions. He had learnt from his mistakes.

No harm would come to Pandora or Laura - not while he still drew breath.


	10. Taking a Break From All Your Worries

"You should sleep Pandy, it’s still early" Laura coaxed, stroking the girl’s hair as she rested her head down against her chest. “Close your eyes, go to sleep. Baby’s in the cradle, counting sheep, climb up to your house of dreams…” Laura’s voice was soft and gentle, instantly putting Pandora at ease as she lulled her daughter off to the land of dreams. It didn’t take long for the girl to fall asleep, curled up against her mother as though trying to steal the warmth from her body. The raptor came to a swift stop in Galactica’s hanger deck, returning the mother and daughter to their second home.

As the heavy metal door unlocked and opened, Laura stood up from her seat, turning around to pick the sleeping child up from her makeshift bed. She would quickly discover that getting off a raptor, in a pair of heels and with her arms filled with her sleeping daughter, was certainly not an easy task. Where was Bill when you need him? Walking across the hanger deck, she could hear the two armed guards following behind her. A perk of being the President. Around the clock protection, unless of course you were with the Admiral of the fleet; who had an unspoken understanding with the guards.

Given the early hour, many of Galactica’s occupants were still fast asleep in their warm beds, stuck in a carefree land without any worry or fear. Laura kept her steps slow, wanting to let Pandora sleep for as long as possible. The longer she slept; the better of a mood she’d be in, and if she woke up in Bill’s quarters, then Pandora would be an angel all day. Heading down the steps to the Admiral’s quarters, Laura adjusted the child in her arms before raising her free hand up to knock on his door. The last thing Bill needed was to be woken up by the President. Before Laura could even knock a second time, the hatch door was pulled back and the Admiral of the Colonial fleet stood, dressed and ready to greet the President.

"Good morning" Bill said, the corners of his lips twitching upwards as he took in the sight of the President and her child. "Morning" Laura came off the last step and headed through the hatch, holding the child against her chest as they left the guards behind. Bill couldn’t help but noticed that Laura looked well rested - even if she should still be asleep at this hour in the morning. "I’m amazed she’s still asleep" Bill confessed, lifting up the thin cotton covers of his bunk as Laura lowered the child down before he tucked her in. "She fell asleep on the raptor on the way over, not even the idea of seeing you could keep her awake any longer" Laura joked in a whispered voice, tucking Pandora’s beloved elephant under her arm and throwing the lavender blanket over her relaxed shoulders as she slept.

Laura turned around to face the man. “Did you sleep at all, Bill?” She asked the man, concern filling her voice as she took in his appearance. It hadn’t changed since his unexpected visit to Colonial One the night before. Truth be told, Bill had found his quarters strangely silent without the giggles of Pandora and the relaxing presence of Laura. Without him even realising it, the pair had made themselves the center of his daily rituals. “I had work to do, you know what it’s like” Bill said, brushing her concern to the side as he walked away from the bunk.

Laura sighed heavily, Bill worried about her constantly but never about himself. She could see the dark marks starting to form under his drooping eyes, the wrinkles on his forehead becoming clearer by the day. The Admiral moved towards his desk, sitting himself down as he went to speak to the woman - only to find her gone. Sighing, he leaned back on his chair and shut his eyes for the first time in over twenty-four hours. There had been too much rattling around his brain the night before for him to sleep - Laura’s revelation, Hera and then Gaius frakking Baltar - now, all he wanted to do was to sleep for a lifetime. However, he pulled himself back when the room filled with the strong, intoxicating smell of freshly made coffee. Creaking his eyes opened, Bill followed Laura as she crossed the room, clasping two beakers of steaming hot coffee. If he wasn’t so exhausted, Bill would have found the domestic scene as being hilarious. Laura making him a much-needed morning dose of coffee as he attempted to pull his body and mind away from the temptation of sleep while Pandora slept peacefully in the next room.

"You’re a lifesaver" He admitted, holding his hands out to embrace the warm mug as Laura held it out towards him. "Don’t I know it" She joked, rounding the desk to lean against it, looking to her right at the man. "How are you feeling?" Bill asked, having seen a change in her mood over the last handful of days. "I’m not tired, it’s just..I feel weak. It’s probably just the flu" Laura concluded, having her own turn to brush off Bill’s concern as she wrapped her hands protectively around her coffee mug before taking a sip - the warmth of the liquid instantly killed off any remaining sleep.

While it was Laura’s prerogative to worry about Pandora, it was his prerogative to worry about Laura. His hand came to brush against her knee as he looked up at her. “If you don’t feel better in a couple of days, you should go and see Cottle” He coaxed, hoping to persuade her to listen to him. “I’ll see” She said, glancing over her shoulder at the sleeping child, trying to dodge anymore of the man’s questions. Bill sighed in discontent, making a mental note to make the woman an appointment with Cottle at the end of the week if she didn’t improve any. If they were going to be domestic then he was damn well going to make sure she was fit and healthy.

Thankfully for Laura, before the man could question her any more about her apparent illness, the hatch door opened and in marched Cottle, Saul and Gaeta.

The three men stopped though when they noticed the President leaning against the Admiral’s desk, thankfully the woman turned quick enough to disguise the man’s hand that rested on her knee. “Madame President, Admiral” Cottle spoke, being the first to recover from the shock as he sat down on the edge of the couch across from the Admiral’s desk while Laura once again walked around the desk and sat down at the low visitor’s chair. Gaeta leaned against the wall nearest the couch while Saul sat himself down in his usual seat.

"Baltar’s little hunger strike is not helping" The aging doctor revealed, as much as he would love to see the man continue it. "I say let him" Saul confessed, knowing that his opinion was shared with at least Laura and Bill, the former having been exposed to the hells of New Caprica. "Bottom line. We need Baltar to talk" Laura reminded them all, knowing that getting the corrupted former President to speak would be the hardest part. "The other cylons saw the same symbols we did, they could be on their way to Earth" She said, throwing a glance in Bill’s direction. The most important thing to them all now was finding Earth, and getting Baltar to speak could be central to that. "I don’t want Baltar to starve" She confessed, as much as it would pleasure her to see the man die a slow and painful death, they needed the information that he no doubt held. "I expect you to make sure he eats" Laura ordered the white haired man, who simply groaned and sighed under his breath, clearly not a fan of his latest task. Standing up, Cottle made his way out of the Admiral’s office, Gaeta quick on his heels as they left. "I’ll see about putting security cameras in that cell" Saul suggested as he stood up, readjusting the top of his uniform, the other two having already left the room.

"Papa" At the sound of the child’s soft mutter, laced with sleep, Saul stopped dead in his tracks, his good eye widening as he turned around slowly. Surely Pandora hadn’t called Bill ‘Papa’? "Seems someone’s awake" Bill stood from his chair and walked towards the child, who stood rubbing her right eye with one hand while she sucked her thumb and clasped her blanket and elephant with the other. Saul found himself glued to the floor, blinking as if to check his eyesight as Bill bent down to pick the child up as though it was the most natural thing in the world. Pandora rested her head down on Bill’s shoulder as he carried her back towards the end of his quarters, Laura followed behind him, discarding her blazer over the couch as she went. "Did they get married and have a frakking kid without me noticing?" Saul muttered under his breath as he turned on his heel and left the room, shutting the hatch behind him, deciding that he must have been hallucinating; or was he?

Pandora sat crossed legged on the couch, her knees balancing the colouring book as she directed all her attention on the page before her as she attacked it with every colour of the rainbow. While Laura left to question Baltar, Bill had willingly volunteered to keep an eye on Pandora, saving her from another trip to the day care. “Papa” She spoke, not looking up as she addressed the Admiral. “Pandy” Bill countered, crossing his ankles and folding his hands as he looked at the child sitting next to him. “People look at me funny” She admitted, her thin eyebrows pulling together to display her confusion at the idea as she changed her gaze to the Admiral. “They whisper about me; say I don’t have a real Mama and Papa” Her eyes filled with a clear, crystal river of tears as her lip began to shiver.

Sensing the on coming melt down, Bill reached out to pull the girl gently to his side, dropping a kiss down on the crown of her head. Pandora rested her head down against the man’s chest, burying her face in his shirt as she sniffled away her tears. “Don’t listen to them, Pandy” He ordered, though his voice was not that of the feared Admiral of the Colonial Fleet, but instead the concerned and worried father figure. “You have Laura and me, and if that doesn’t satisfy those people, we’ll send Kara and Lee after them with their vipers” He said, hoping to earn a smile or a precious giggle from the usually upbeat child.

"I love you, Papa" Pandora confessed as she giggled, imagining the sight of an irritated, annoyed and protective Kara and Lee charging through the hallways of Galactica in search of the whisperers. Bill paused for a moment. It had been years - decades even - since he had last heard that statement from a child. Bill couldn’t even remember when the last time was. Perhaps it had been when Zak was young? Around five or six. Before Bill began spending twice as much time on board Battlestars than he did in his home. He wouldn’t make that mistake twice. "I love you too, Pandy" He assured her, smiling down at her with unconditional devotion as he felt her grip of his chest tighten as she hugged him. "And Mama too?" Pandora looked up at the man with widened eyes as she awaited his answer. Once again Bill stopped. What exactly did he feel towards Laura? It was certainly more than just friendship - they had crossed that line the second Pandora arrived in their lives, as though pushing them towards each other. Brought together by someone who could only be viewed as a miracle - and second chance, both for himself and Laura.

However before the man could answer, the hatch door opened and the sound of high heels being violently and forcefully thrown into a corner echoed around the room. Laura certainly knew how to make herself at home. “It didn’t work” Laura announced, putting her hands on her hips as she pursed her lips, clearly not amused that all her hard work had been for nothing. It was then that she noticed the redness around her daughter’s eyes, clearly the girl had been crying. “What’s wrong, Pandora?” Laura asked, instantly forgetting about her own worries and annoyance towards Baltar as she sat beside her daughter, reaching out to cup the girl’s cheek.

"Nothing, Mama" Pandora whispered, receiving an unsatisfied eyebrow raise from Laura before Pandora rested her head back against her personal pillow - otherwise known as Bill’s chest. While Laura was not impressed by the lack of a suitable answer from her daughter, she decided to drop the topic.

Bill reached across to touch Laura’s shoulder, earning a sympathetic smile from the woman. “What happened?” He asked, lifting Pandora’s arm to place her on his knee, allowing Laura to move closer to the pair of them. “He saw straight through it, called a bluff on the entire thing” Laura confessed, shaking her head as she remembered the man’s actions. He didn’t fear death. He knew it wasn’t coming to visit him today. He used that to his advantage. Laura had strained her voice for nothing.

Upon opening the hatch door, Saul wished that he would remember to knock first. He silently wondered if they could get any more domestic. While he wasn’t the President’s biggest fan - by any means - she brought a bit of life back into the old man, and he had to thank her for that. Heading over to the seat nearest the lamp, and opposite the President, Saul watched as the woman moved to place her head in her hands, as though she had given up on Baltar all together. Personally, Saul wouldn’t have minded allowing the woman to throw him out the airlock; though a more slow and painful death was called for in Baltar’s case.

"You gave it your best shot" Bill reminded the woman, knowing that Laura would beat herself up about this for days. The President was stubborn and headstrong, not excepting defeat. "Yeah, he still wouldn’t talk" Saul informed his lifelong friend, looking across at the couple on the couch, the young child settled between them. "Either he’s got more balls than I give him credit for…" Saul began, however it was Bill who finished the statement "Or he knew you were bluffing" The Admiral stated, leaning back on the couch with a heavy sigh.

"What do we do now?" Saul asked, directly his question at Bill as Laura remained mute on the couch, no doubt recalling the events of her failed attempt to get Baltar to talk. "There is one thing" Bill began, looking down at Laura as both she and Pandora raised their heads to look at the Admiral. Looking over the top of her glasses, Laura anxiously waited for the man’s information. "Military once ran an experimental interrogation program, involving drugs. Hallucinations" Laura sat up a little stranger at the man’s words. "The goal of the program is to create a state of anxiety so intense, that the subject believed their very survival was at stake" Bill revealed, the newfound information caused Laura to lean back on the couch, Pandora’s head coming to rest on her lap as she did so, stroking her daughter’s thin hair. "It might get Baltar to talk, but it’s dangerous for someone in his condition" Bill concluded, although Laura appeared already convinced by the idea. "You’re telling me we have these drugs on board Galactica?" Laura asked, raising an eyebrow at the two men while Pandora looked between the adults with a confused expression masking her face.

Bill’s nod was enough confirmation for Laura. Pandora raised her head as she felt her mother move from the couch and towards the hatch. “Can you fetch Tori please?” She asked one of the guards before shutting the hatch once more, heading back into the room.

"I don’t like Baltar" Pandora uttered under her breath, folding her arms as she pouted her lips. Saul couldn’t help but smirk at the child’s words, sounding every bit like Laura and Bill’s daughter. She had hardly gotten a chance to spend time with both Laura and Bill over the last handful of days. It seemed at least one of them was always dealing with the overthrown former President. "You and me both, little one" Laura informed the child as she bent down before her, clasping both of Pandora’s small, porcelain hands in her own. "You won’t have to worry about him for much longer, I promise" She explained, comforting her daughter as she dropped a kiss on her forehead before returning to her full height.

As she heard the familiar ‘click clacking’ of heels against the cold grey floor, Laura turned to see Tori as the hatch door opened. “We shouldn’t be too long” Laura informed the woman, slipping her discarded heels back on, leaning on Bill’s shoulder for support. Tori swallowed her pride and nodded her head. “Of course” She said, wondering when she had went from Laura’s chief of staff to her personal babysitter.

Laura, Bill and Saul stepped out of the hatch, heading up the steps towards the hallway, disappearing from Pandora’s line of view. Crossing her arms, Pandora looked at the wall in front of her and away from the woman assigned to babysit her. Pandora felt that there was something…strange…about Tori, leading the child to mistrust the woman, even at her young age.

When Laura, Saul and Bill returned, Pandora was in the exact same position she had been in when they left her. In fact, it looked like she hadn’t moved a muscle. Laura walked towards her daughter, sitting herself down beside the child on the couch as Bill silently dismissed Tori. As Laura sat down, Pandora rested her cheek against her mother’s arm, pulling her legs up beside her on the couch. Laura reached over to collect the well read scrolls from the table, opening the bookmark at the page of interest.

"Listen to this" She began, readjusting her glasses on her face as she spoke. "The final five cylon models. Five pillars of the temple, for the five priests devoted to the one who’s name can not be spoken" She revealed, although Saul was quick to dismiss her ‘religion nonsense’ as he sat down beside her on the couch. "He’s holding a lot back, I’m sure of it" Laura thought aloud, Baltar knew something, he just wasn’t willing to tell them. "Maybe we should resort to more direct methods" Bill announced after he poured three healthy glasses of bourbon, handing one out to his XO and President, before sitting on the other side of Pandora and the President.

Taking the bourbon glass, the prospect seemed to appeal to Saul. “Now you’ve got my vote” He said, looking over at Bill as the man sat down. Looking down at her daughter, Laura thought about the situation with Baltar. “His biggest fear is that even if he talks, we’ll kill him” She said, as much as she was in favor of the idea - no doubt Saul was too. “We have to ease his fear, make him believe that if he collaborates, the very least he’ll get his life” Laura suggested, before taking a small sip of her bourbon, allowing it to soothe her strained voice from her earlier shouting session at Baltar. “He won’t believe that coming from us” Bill reminded her, knowing the man didn’t trust any of the three of them. “Of course not, we have to find someone he trusts” Laura said, the idea made Bill stop midway through a sip of his bourbon. Who on earth would Baltar trust? That wasn’t a blasted cylon.

"I’ll go and leave you lovebirds alone" Saul said, his voice serious and strict as ever as he began to rise from his spot on the couch, placing the empty bourbon glass down on the coffee table. "Admiral, President, Pandora" He nodded his head at the trio as he left the room, shutting the hatch door behind him slowly.

Bill and Laura looked down to their side at Pandora when they heard her heavy breathing as she rested against Laura’s side, already fast asleep. “I swear, she could sleep anywhere. Couches, cots, raptors - you name it” Laura joked in a soft voice, not wanting to wake the child up as she stroked her hair for a moment, glad to see that the child had relaxed a little. Standing up, Bill took the empty bourbon glasses over towards the small collection of alcoholic drinks. Careful not to wake the sleeping child, Laura slipped away from Pandora’s side and towards the bunk, taking the blanket and carrying it towards the child.

"My head is killing me" Laura confessed, lifting the blanket and throwing it over the sleeping child, watching as the girl wrapped her arms around it. "Go and lie in the bunk, I’ll get you a painkiller and a glass of water" Bill said, trying to hide his concern, knowing the woman would only brush it away as being nothing more than the flu. Laura would be going to see Cottle as soon as possible, even if he had to drag her down to the hospital himself. He wasn’t going to watch her get sick and do nothing about it. The woman nodded her head, deciding not to protest against the headstrong, stubborn man. "Okay" She muttered, pushing Pandora’s thin hair out of her eyes as she bent down to kiss the child’s forehead after tucking her in.

Following the man’s orders, Laura patted across the carpet, kicking her heels off at the bottom of the bed and got on top of the bunk, resting her head against the firm pillows as she shut her eyes for a moment. It felt as though she had walked into a brick wall repeatedly after a drunken night on the town. Laura was certainly positive of one thing - that was not why her head was in such a painful state. She cracked open her eyes as she felt the bed beside her dip.

Accepting the glass of chilled water and the two small painkiller tablets - her personally lifesaver - Laura sat up in the bed as she looked at Bill. “I told him I didn’t take any satisfaction in seeing his pain” She confessed, because as much as she wanted the man gone, Laura hated seeing the sight of pain on the face of any man, woman or child - regardless of their past wrongs. “The truth is that I was willing to see him endure a great deal of suffering in order to get what I wanted” Laura said, unable to deny that she had willingly allowed - even requested - the use of the medication on Baltar, well aware of the consequences. “I wanted a genuine admission of guilt” She concluded, knowing she would not be able to settle for anything less than that. “It’s something you’re not going to get from someone like Baltar” Bill reminded Laura, watching as she drowned her painkillers with her water before taking the glass from her and placing it on the nightstand.

As Laura rested her head back down against the pillow, she looked up at the man. “It’s not who he sees himself as, in his mind he’s the victim” Bill stated, knowing how men like Baltar thought, how they would victimise themselves to handle their guilt. “It’s not too late for him to just..disappear” He offered, knowing that such a situation would lessen Laura’s stresses greatly - he wouldn’t have suggested it otherwise. Laura felt her lips pull up in a small smile, aware of the man’s reasoning behind such an offer as she covered his hand with her own.

"We can’t do that" She admitted, even though it killed her to say it. "For all his crimes, he’s one of us" Laura accepted that now, having seen the pain they had caused him when under the experimental drugs. "So what happens next?" Bill asked, his hand coming to cover Laura’s on his left hand.

"We give him his trial" Laura spoke, a comfortable silence falling over the couple. Laura remained in the bunk, gazing up at the man beside her as she took in his appearance. Bill on the other hand, was deep in thought as he thought of their current situation, remembering Pandora’s earlier comments and the thoughts it had provoked. What was Laura to him now? They had crossed the line of friendship as soon as Pandora arrived, and in his mind, they were very much passed the point of no return.

Turning around, Bill’s eyes caught Laura as he bent down slowly, his hand coming to cup Laura’s cheek as his lips captured hers in a loving embrace. Shutting her eyes, Laura deepened the kiss as her hand slipped behind the man’s neck. Laura pulled away when oxygen once again became a necessity. Bill could see the dim light dancing in Laura’s eyes as she gazed up at him. “Stay” Laura breathed, her hand clasping around the man’s wrist as she looked up at him, her freshly kiss lips parting as she anxiously waited for his reply. Bill didn’t have to be asked twice.

Laura slipped closer to the wall and turned on her side, her head coming to rest on Bill’s chest, her hand protectively placed on his heart, similarly to that night on New Caprica. Placing a kiss down on the crown of Laura’s head, Bill wished that time itself could stop in that moment. Everything was at peace in the room; even if it was like a war zone outside. “Get some sleep, Laura” He whispered against her forehead, watching as the woman’s eyes grew heavy as she listened to the steady beating of his heart.

With one hand tangled in Laura’s fire kissed waves, and the other clasped over the woman’s hand on his chest, Bill couldn’t help but follow her into a peaceful slumber. Baltar would have his trial.

He just prayed that it wouldn’t bring untold chaos to the fleet - especially for Laura.


	11. The Woman King

Laura awoke to the gentle shaking of her hand. “Mama?” The small voice asked, though the desire for just another five minutes of sleep kept Laura’s head against Bill’s chest and her eyes shut. The voice came again, this time more hoarse and lower; as though it was about to break in two. Cracking open her eyes, it took several seconds for Laura’s eyes to adjust to the dim light surrounding the bunk. “Mama” Pandora spoke again, causing Laura to look down at the side of the bunk where her daughter stood, wrapped in her blanket and clutching her plush elephant.

"What’s the matter, Pandy?" Laura asked, taking in the snow white skin of her daughter - it was paler than usual. "Don’t feel well" The child revealed, heading down to the end of the bunk as she attempted to push herself off the floor and onto the bunk, all but crawling up to her mother at the top of the bed. Laura held her arms out for the child, who fell into them with ease, resting her head down against her mother’s chest as Laura leaned back against the pillows.

Pandora turned her head to look down at her father as he slept beside them. “Papa needs a bigger bed” She announced, earning a small chuckle from Laura before the woman kissed her forehead. “Yes, I think he does too” Laura revealed, watching as the man beside her stirred in his sleep, as though he had known they were talking about him.

Upon opening his eyes, Bill took in the scene before him. It seemed that at some stage, Pandora had found her way into the bunk as well. Clearly he would have to go in search of a bigger one. It didn’t take him long to notice the paleness of Pandora’s skin. “Is everything okay?” He asked, reaching out to touch the child’s back as he sat up on the bed as quickly as he could first thing in the morning. “I don’t feel well” Pandora groaned, shutting her eyes as she rested her head down against her mother’s shoulder, facing Bill.

Bill slipped out of the bunk, deciding that a glass of water might help the girl feel at least a little better. Laura left the bunk soon after him, though instead decided to pace the floors with the child, hoping that the motion might put her back to sleep. On the occasions that she had looked after Hera on New Caprica, walking around with the child was the quickest way of putting her down to sleep. “Any idea what’s wrong with her?” Bill asked when he returned, holding the small glass of water. “None at all. It could just be the flu or a stomach bug. I’ll keep her with me today though” Laura thought aloud as she sat down on the couch, accepting the glass of water from the man and holding it for Pandora as she drank it slowly, allowing the liquid to cool her burning throat. Bill nodded his head in agreement, sitting down beside the pair.

"If you need anything, ring through to the CIC. I don’t see anything too exciting happening today" He admitted, his hand coming to rest on Laura’s lower back as she turned to smile at him. "Thank you" She said, leaning forward to place a soft kiss against his cheek. He took a hold of the woman’s hand, squeezing it softly as she pulled away. "I mean it Laura, anything happens, you call for me" He reminded her, knowing that as much as he would rather stay with Laura and take care for Pandora, he was needed in the CIC. Duties called.

As the wireless let out a shrilling ring, Laura sighed to herself. The joys of being the President and the Admiral? Your work never stopped. Pulling himself up off the couch, Bill headed across the room, rounding his desk as he collected the wireless off its cradle. “This is the Admiral…” He said, looking across the room as Laura wrapped her arms tightly around Pandora, swaying the girl from side to side slowly in a bid to get her back to sleep. “Of course, come right up” Bill said, shaking his head as he finished the phone call before returning the wireless to its cradle.

"Who was it?" Laura asked as the man walked towards his bunk, putting on the dark navy shirt of his uniform. "Saul, Doctor Robert, Helo and Cottle are on their way up. Do you want him to take a look at Pandy?" Bill thought aloud, though turned around to find that the child had already nodded back off to sleep. Shaking her head, Laura stood up from the couch, holding Pandora against her chest as the girl used her shoulder as a makeshift pillow. "There’s no point waking her. Hopefully she’ll just sleep it off" Laura concluded, knowing that waking Pandora up from her sleep was not an easy task - it would be safer to send a viper into the middle of the cylon fleet.

Readjusting Pandora in her arms, Laura smiled at the man softly. “We best get going before Saul comes, last thing we need to do is give your XO a heart attack” She joked, causing Bill to shake his head and laugh to himself, remembering the priceless look on the man’s face the day before. “No, we don’t” He admitted, knowing that he should probably speak to Saul about Laura, after all, he was well aware that he wasn’t Laura’s biggest fan by any means.

Buttoning up his shirt, Bill stopped in front of the mother and daughter duo. Dropping a gentle kiss on Laura’s lips, he fixed the blanket that rested over Pandora. “I meant what I said, if you need me, you know where I am” He reminded her, knowing that Laura wasn’t the sort to ask for help. Laura smiled at the man in front of her, nodding her head. “I know” She said, her voice soft as her hand cradled Pandora’s head close to her shoulder.

"I’ll be back as soon as I can get away from Colonial One" She promised, tightening her grip of the child as she turned on her heel and headed out of the hatch. The two armed guards followed her down the hallway, one in front and the other behind, guiding the way to the hanger deck. Laura and Pandora were only gone a minute before the others arrived in Bill’s quarters, leaving no time for the man to ponder on his thoughts for the woman and child.

Laura rested her elbow on the writing desk, looking over the rim of her glasses at her Vice President. “Tell me there won’t be a trial” He begged, believing that the idea was complete and utter madness. “Gaius Baltar will be tried for high crimes and treason” Laura informed Zarek, reaching her hand up to slip her glasses off her nose while her other hand rested over her stomach. From her spot on the corner of the plush leather couch, Pandora raised her head from its resting spot on the armrest at the mention of the former President’s name. While she had thankfully never met the man, she was aware of exactly how Laura and Bill felt towards him. “A tribunal of judges will hear the evidence against him, a verdict will be read, he will be found guilty and he will finally be held responsible for his actions” Laura explained to the man, who simply folded his arms in annoyance and leaned back against Tori’s desk

"If you summon up a little patience, as I have done, we will get though this ordeal" She suggested, though she knew Tom Zarek well enough to know that he wouldn’t be silent on his opinion about the trial. "Listen to me" He spoke, his voice as low as a whisper as he addressed the President. "Baltar will get his trial, and this is what you’ll get; a hurricane" He attempted to argue, watching as Laura turned on her chair slightly. "The media will descend on you and watch and scrutinize your every move, you will have sectarian violence, you will have assassination attempts - both on yourself and Pandora," He continued, glancing over Laura’s shoulder at the child in the background, believing that dragging her into his argument might force the woman to see sense. "You will have civil unrest on a scale that we haven’t seen. Work, labor, every day routine in this fleet will come to a stop. This trial is going to bring this entire fleet down" Zarek concluded, his hands falling by his side as he began to give up any hope he had of talking the President around.

Laura sat silently as Tori spoke to the Vice President about the measures in place to combat such issues. Next to Bill, Zarek was the most confident, headstrong and self-assured person she knew, though in that moment he looked truly terrified. “If I were you, I would declare marshal law during the trial” He informed her, pushing himself off the desk and standing in front of her as he spoke, her eyes following him across the room. “You are going to need a lot more than a little patience too survive - both of you” Tom said, glancing over at the child once more, knowing she was the best card he had to persuade Laura. “I’m here if you need me” He finished, holding his hands up as he finished speaking, turning on his heel to leave the room.

Pandora sat with her knees against her chest, her blanket wrapped tightly around her as she watched her mother. Just the sound of Zarek’s voice made her want to cry. Bill clearly disliked the man, and didn’t trust him either. That was enough for Pandora to hate and fear him. “Can we go and see Papa?” Pandora asked, struggling to keep her eyes open as Zarek walk towards the door.

Hearing the child’s request, Zarek turned on his heel silently and watched as Laura - who failed to notice him lingering at the door - stood from her chair and walked towards the child. “Papa’s busy on Galactica” The President informed her child, who seemed on the verge of tears at the idea. Zarek’s eyes widened then. There was only one man on Galactica that Laura Roslin would allow her adoptive daughter to refer to as ‘Papa’. Admiral William Adama. Armed with this new information, Zarek left the mother and daughter, set on finding more information about his new discovery. Perhaps the rumors around the fleet were true?

Laura reached out to touch the child’s forehead, feeling the heat radiating off her skin like waves, the sweat almost sticking to her pale porcelain skin. “My head and ears are sore, I don’t feel well, Mama” Pandora confessed, her breathing heavy as she tried to keep her eyes from closing. A dash of fear came to Laura’s eyes. Pandora had been nowhere near as sick a few hours ago. Whatever was wrong, Laura had to get her to Galactica. Bill would know what to do, wouldn’t he?

"Tori" Laura called over her shoulder, her Chief of Staff stepping closer to her and Pandora. "Send for a raptor, we need to go to Galactica, now!" The woman insisted, hearing Tori’s heels disappearing down the hallway as she followed out the President’s order, having seen for herself just how ill Pandora was. Lifting the phone nearest to them, Laura dialed the number for the CIC, all the while allowing Pandora to clutch her free hand.

"Admiral, it’s the President" Gaeta called, exchanging the call to the wireless nearest Bill. "Madame President" Bill said, keeping his voice as professional as possible, expecting the phone call to be about a political matter. Why else would Laura call directly to the CIC? However, the tone of Laura’s voice warned him that it wasn’t. "Bill, I think Pandora’s caught something. We’re coming to Galactica" The woman’s voice was laced with fear, her speech quicker than usual as she all but stumbled over her words. "Laura…" Bill hissed his voice sharp enough to grab the attention of the CIC officers nearest him as he heard Laura place the phone back on its cradle.

Saul stepped towards the man, his eye widened as he stopped at his side. “Pandora’s taken ill. Laura’s bringing her to Galactica” Bill revealed, placing his wireless back down as he turned to face the man. He prayed to the Lords of Kobol that Pandora didn’t have the illness making its way around the fleet. “Go and see her.” Saul ordered, seeing that the man was battling with himself, over his duty to Pandora and his duty to the fleet. “Are you sure?” Bill asked, unsure of leaving Saul in charge of the CIC, well aware of what had happened last time he had entrusted the man with the position. “Go!” Saul’s voice was demanding, showing that he wasn’t about to accept no as an answer. He knew that both Pandora and Laura would need him.

By the time Bill had arrived in the hanger deck, the raptor from Colonial One had just docked. He stepped forward as the heavy metal door of the raptor pushed out slowly, Laura stepping forward as it did, Pandora safely wrapped up in her arms. “How is she?” Bill asked, helping the woman down from the raptor by taking ahold of her hand. “She’s burning up” Laura informed him, watching as the man moved to touch Pandora’s forehead. He knew what mother’s were like. His wife had been the same with Zak and Lee. They instantly feared the worse when their child was ill. It seemed Laura was no exception to this rule. Though it was clear that she had been right about one thing - Pandora certainly wasn’t well. “Papa” Pandora mumbled softly, leaning against her father’s touch as she forced a weak smile. Bringing his hand to touch Pandora’s back, Bill pulled his other hand away from her forehead, having felt both the heat and the sweat.

"We’ll take her down to Doctor Robert" Bill thought aloud, knowing that he was closer than Cottle and that if Pandora did have the illness, then Doctor Robert was best to treat her. Not having to be told twice, Laura followed the man through the hanger deck and around the hallways of Galactica, the two armed guards accompanying her struggled to keep up with the couple as they took their steps two at a time.

Arriving in ‘Dogsville’, Laura was glad for the first time of the guards who followed in her shadow. Between them and Bill, she had managed to cut through the crowds in record time, arriving at the makeshift hospital bay in under a minute. “Admiral, Madame President, what can I do for you?” Doctor Robert asked, before his eyes landed on the sickly child in Laura’s arms. “It looks like she’s just over the twelve-hour time, take her over to the bed” The man ordered, filling a syringe with the antibiotics as Laura walked towards the bed, attempting to put the girl down, however Pandora protested by tightening her grip of Laura’s neck until the woman gave up and simply placed the child on her knee. Bill stood beside the pair, unable to believe that the child had turned so quickly. She had been absolutely fine last night.

Laura exchanged a worried glance with Bill as the doctor quickly examined Pandora before confirming his earlier belief. “Just over the twelve hours, but I don’t see why the antibiotics shouldn’t still have the same effect” The man admitted, taking the needle and checking the measurement of antibiotics before taking Pandora’s arm. At the sight of the needle, the child’s eyes widened - even in her state of daze - and she looked worriedly from Laura to Bill; the latter responded by bending down beside the pair so that he was near eye level with Pandora.

"Pandy" He spoke, pulling both Laura and Pandora’s eyes away from the sharp needle. "Remember what I told you about viper pilots?" He asked, watching as the child concentrated for a moment before speaking. "They’re not afraid of anything" Pandora said, her voice soft as she spoke, failing to notice the needle going in until she felt a sharp pang of pain as it left. "There, that should do the trick. Though it might make her a little drowsy, so I suggest staying here for a couple of hours, let her sleep off the worst of it and she should be as right as rain. Though I’ll give you some medicine to take with you" Doctor Robert informed the pair, taking his gloves off and placing them, along with the needle, into the bin nearest Pandora’s temporary bed.

Dr. Robert pulled the thick army green curtains around the bed to offer the trio some privacy as he left. “I over reacted didn’t I?’ Laura asked, looking up at the man beside her, who simply smile and shook his head slightly. “Every mother jumps to conclusions and worries when their child is sick, especially the first time. Though, if you hadn’t overreacted, she would have went well passed the twelve-hour stage” Bill reminded her as he sat down beside her on the bed. Laura moved to rest her head down on the man’s shoulder, shutting her eyes for a moment as Pandora wrapped her hands around her mother’s arms, looking up at her father. “I’m as brave as a viper pilot, Papa” She joked, and Bill could have swore that the colour was already starting to return to her flushed cheeks. “Oh, you definitely are” He agreed, allowing a chuckle to escape his lips as he reached out to touch Pandora’s forehead for a moment.

It didn’t take long for the antibiotics to kick in and for Pandora to fall into a peaceful slumber. In fact, the girl slept for almost three hours. “Can we stay on Galactica?” Pandora asked, her pleading eyes looking from Laura to Bill, the former being well aware of her daughter’s new-found hatred for Colonial One. “You’ll have to ask, Bill” Laura said, her voice concealing a smile as she packed up her folders and papers into her leather tote. Bill finished readjusting his jacket before he spoke. “You know very well young lady, that you’re allowed to stay on Galactica for as long as you like” Bill reminded the child, who simply smiled happily and swayed her feet from left to right.

"Let me carry that" Bill insisted, moving to take Laura’s bag and throwing it on his shoulder, freeing the President’s arms to allow her to scoop up her daughter, placing the child on her hip. Stepping out of the hospital wing of ‘Dogsville’, Laura walked behind Bill, with the two guards three steps behind her, as they attempted to find the quickest route out of the chaos.

Pandora tugged on the collar of her mother’s blouse when she noticed something - or rather someone - across the room. “Look, Mama” The child said, pointing across the mad, chaotic room at two figures in the distance. Laura stopped mid-stride and followed her daughter’s finger, watching the two figures who were advancing towards them, seemingly heading in the same direction as them.

"Laura" Bill said, stepping closer to the mother and daughter, his eyes following the direction of Pandora’s. The girl was waving her right hand towards the pair as she smiled brightly. Laura’s eyes widened as they fell on Athena and Hera. Usually, Pandora avoided any and all contact with other children, yet now she was trying to get Hera’s attention across the room by waving at her. Maybe things were starting to improve?

Laura found that her voice failed to work by the time Athena stepped in front of her, holding Hera in a similar manner to the way she was holding Pandora. The girl had surely grown since New Caprica, though she still had her soft chocolate curls and adorable dimples. Laura silently wondered if the child remembered her at all; though she doubted it. “Hello” Athena spoke, greeting the older couple and their child first. “Hera…” Pandora said happily, reaching out for the younger child, who seemed to grab her hand without resistance.

"We came to check that Pandora was okay" Athena admitted, watching how the two children interacted with each other; as though they had known each other for their entire life. "How did you know?" Laura asked, confusion masking her face. She was sure that Athena wasn’t on the hanger deck when she came in, nor was she in the hospital wing at the same time as them. "You were a bit hard to miss, Madame President. That and the fact I was on my way down to check on Hera as well" Athena explained, before turning her glaze to Bill who stood contentedly to the side, not believing the scene in front of him.

"I’m sorry. For everything" Laura confessed, her voice heavy with guilt and sorrow as she looked at the woman in front of her with pleading eyes. "I don’t know what I would do if someone took Pandora" Laura spoke truthfully, shallowing her pride as she attempted to build a bridge with the cylon in front of her. Shockingly, Athena seemed to accept her apology. "It’s okay. It’s in the past. Hera’s here now and that’s all that matters" The cylon said, smiling at the woman in front of her. Forgiveness was hard; but it was easier than holding a vendetta against the President for the rest of their lives.

As the two women spoke, Bill kept his eyes on Pandora as the child rested her head on Laura’s chest but continued to smile at Hera. Perhaps the pair had met at daycare? Though Bill was glad that Pandora seemed to have made a connection with at least one child - even if it was the human/cylon hybrid.

"We need to go, but I hope that Pandora and Hera can be friends" The pilot said, nodding her head at the President and Admiral. Laura held her hand out for the younger woman to shake, hoping she would accept the offer of peace between them. "Madame President" Athena said as she put her hand out to accept Laura’s peace offer, shaking the older woman’s hand before looking at Bill. "Admiral" She spoke, before turning away from the couple and heading back towards Helo.

Laura looked down at the child as Pandora wrapped her arms around her mother’s shoulders. “Let me take her” Bill offered, after all Laura looked exhausted - both mentally and physically. Nodding her head, Laura allowed the man to slip the child out of her arms and into his. Walking out of ‘Dogsville’, she slipped her hand through Bill’s arm and allowed him to silently guide her back to his quarters.

"You need to go and see Cottle, Laura." Bill announced upon entering the privacy of his quarters, the guards standing watch in the hallway behind the hatch door. "At the end of the week" She compromised, knowing that the man was not going to back off until she agreed to at least visit Cottle. Bill knew there was no point in fighting with her and instead nodded his head in agreement, though made a mental note to make sure that the woman made herself an appointment. “Let me look after Pandora first, then I’ll go” She concluded, watching as he rested the half sleeping child down onto the bunk.

Laura yawned loudly, the sound filling the room as she glanced down at her watch. It was almost half eleven at night, usually Laura would still be busy dealing with paperwork or preparing herself for a meeting of the Quorum, but today, it felt as though it could be three o’clock in the morning. She had hit a brick wall and crashed. She knew that much now.

"Get some sleep, I’ll be back soon" Bill said, his hand resting on Laura’s arm as his eyes watched her with concern before he pressed a gentle kiss against her forehead. "Don’t be too late" Laura insisted, her droopy red tinted eyes struggling to stay open as she listened to Bill’s heavy footsteps disappearing out of the hatch door and into the deserted hallway of Galactica.

"What are you doing here?" Saul asked, his curiosity clear as the Admiral walked into the CIC, stopping beside him. "My job" Bill said, stating the obvious as he looked up at the monitors. Yet again, it seemed the cylons had yet to catch up with them. In fact, it had been quiet on that front for several days now. "Your job is looking after your girls” Saul’s words caused the man to check his hearing. Had Saul just referred to Laura and Pandora as 'his girls'? Perhaps the man really had turned a corner in regards to Laura.

While he wouldn’t openly admit it, Saul had come to accept Laura as being apart of Bill’s life. Ever since the exodus from New Caprica, he had seen a change in Bill. He had a sense of life to him again. He smiled more, he laughed more and he looked more happy with his life than Saul had seen in decades. Laura and Pandora were to thank for that. Yesterday and today’s events were testimony to that. Bill had willingly slipped into the father role in the family unit he had Laura had created for Pandora. Saul knew he had no choice but to accept the woman and child as being a center point in Bill’s life.

"They’re asleep anyway" Bill confessed, or at least he hoped Laura had went to sleep, though a part of him suspected she would stay up until he returned. At this time of night, most of the CIC staff were either in the bar - or half under the bar - or in their bunks catching up on some much-needed sleep.

"Who would have thought it, William Adama, a family man" Saul teased his oldest friend, and he could have sworn that Bill was doing his best to conceal the smile that was pulling at his lips. Even when Bill was married to Carolanne and the boys were young, he had never put Bill down as a ‘family man’, though he believed that may have had something to do with Bill’s more than rocky relationship with his wife soon after Lee was born. "Don’t let the idea go to your head, Saul" Bill warned, expecting Saul’s teasing to continue for at least a few weeks - if not longer.

It was only when he was standing in the CIC that he remembered what the next day was. His anniversary. Though perhaps, for the first time since his divorce, he wouldn’t mourn the loss of a marriage and a failed family unit, but bask in the warmth of another. Laura was not Carolanne, a fact that Bill was glad of, and Pandora was certainly not Lee or Zak, but why did he feel like more of a family with them than he ever did with his real family? Though he was sure of one thing.

Tomorrow would not be the usual nightmare he was forced to relive on that faithful day every year; because he had Laura and Pandora now.


	12. A Day In The Life

For the first time in years, Bill allowed his wedding photo to sit in the deep darkness of his desk drawer. For the first time in years, he didn’t think about Carolanne. For the first time in years, he didn’t focus on his regrets; but rather his future.

It seemed Pandora was beginning to pick up, running circles around Bill’s quarters in search of her plush elephant. “Mr. Elephant!” The child called, attempting to reach her hand down the back of Bill’s couch in search of the object. Laura watched over her steaming coffee in a state of amusement as Bill attempted to rip the room apart in search of the plush toy. “Found him!” Bill proclaimed, lifting the grey plush from its hiding spot down the side of the bunk. He turned around in time to catch the giggling Pandora, who was quick to thank her rescuer with a soppy kiss on his cheek before snatching her elephant back. “You’re not going anywhere, Mr Elephant!” Pandora proclaimed as Bill sat her down on the ground, allowing her to head over to the table where her mother sat.

Laura sipped on her coffee as Bill sat down opposite her, Pandora taking the seat beside him. “The longer I can stay here and out of Colonial One the better” Laura confessed as she unfolded her glasses and placed them on the bridge of her nose, looking down at the reports beside her. “Why don’t you use one of the meeting rooms?” Bill suggested, knowing that there was no point in the woman trailing over to Colonial One if she didn’t even want to be there; it seemed she now shared Pandora’s apparent hatred for the ship.

As much as Laura wanted to jump at the idea, she was mindful that she wouldn’t be able to keep Pandora with her then. “Would you be okay going to day care?” She asked the child, who was cuddling her elephant close to her chest after being reunited with him. “Will Hera be there?” Pandora wondered aloud, attempting to reach across the table to collect her small glass of orange juice. “I believe so” Bill said, moving to lift the glass and handed it to the child, who thanked the man with a smile. “Okay, then” Pandora concluded, smiling at her mother who seemed thankful that the child had made at least one friend, even more so that it was Hera. “It’s settled. We’ll be staying on Galactica for a little while longer” Laura announced, returning her attention to the reports beside her, her fountain pen resting between her fingers as she pursed her lips, her concentration dropped however when the wireless began to ring.  
Lifting the empty glasses, Laura discarded them in the sink before readjusting her crisp white blouse, throwing her black blazer on top and doing up the belt. Bill allowed himself to turn his attention away from his phone call and towards the President as she attempted to get into her heels with as much grace as she could master. It never failed to show him how easily both Laura and Pandora seemed to have integrated themselves in his lives; it looked as though they simply belonged in his quarters, as though they were a focal part of it. Pandora closed over the straps of her patent leather shoes before standing to attention beside her mother.

"I’ll call Tori from the meeting room, get her to bring my files and such over" Laura explained as she ran her fingers through her hair, watching as Bill returned the wireless to its cradle. "Saul’s on his way over" The Admiral informed, moving towards the pair as he spoke. Laura dropped a kiss on the man’s cheek before throwing her bag over her shoulder, her eyes dropping down onto the child beside her. Pandora looked far from amused. Looking up at her father, Pandora crossed her arms and stood as straight as she could until the man bent down to her level. Smiling at him, Pandora’s posture at once relaxed as she launched forward and wrapped her arms around Bills neck, kissing his cheek before hugging him. "Come on!" Pandora demanded, slipping out of her father’s arms and reaching up to grip her mother’s hand, attempting to pull the woman out of the door with her. It seemed Pandora was enthusiastic about going to daycare; an unusual occurrence. Laura was glad that Hera seemed to have brought Pandora out of her shell. Bill shook his head and let out a low chuckle as he made his way towards the bedroom once more.

By the time Bill made it to the conference room, Laura was already half way through a much-needed dose of caffeine. Looking up the small mountain of paperwork that had accumulated in front of her, Laura greeted the Admiral with a smile as she sat the coffee mug down gently. “Bill” She said, remaining in her seat as he walked towards her, stopping in front of her desk. “Being in here reminds me of how crazy I get on Colonial One” She informed him, her shoulders relaxing as she basked in the comfort of being in his presence, the corners of her eyes turning up in a carefree smile. “Deep space pilots used to call it OBE” Bill began, moving to rest the palms of his hands against the desk between them. “Overcome by events” He explained, though he silently believed that both Pandora and Laura may have ‘OBE’ - or just a sheer desire to stay off Colonial One for as long as physically possible. “You and Pandora are welcomed on Galactica anytime, you know that” Bill said, reminding the woman as he looked down at the collection of files in front of him. If Laura wasn’t feeling well, then the last thing she needed was to go through mountains of paperwork.

"Tori drew up an agenda" Laura confessed as she lifted the stapled booklet and handed it over to the man. "Baltar again" Bill muttered under his breath, wondering why they couldn’t just throw him out the nearest airlock and be done with it all. He glanced up as Laura took another sip of her coffee, it seemed to be the only thing keeping her awake and functioning. "Can’t we just give him back to the cylons?" He suggested, pacing in front of Laura’s desk as he absent-mindedly looked at the list of discussion points, more concerned with Laura’s health. "You know how much I love that idea, unfortunately, the cylons don’t seemed to want him anymore than we do" Laura said, sighing to herself as she lifted herself from the chair, standing to her full height as she looked across the table to Bill.

"We have to give Baltar a trial, but under what law?" She thought aloud, her mind far too clouded to focus on such an issue. Bill could already feel a headache beginning to form. "This fleet is not exactly brimming with legal talent" Laura reminded him, her eyes following him as he rounded the desks and walked towards her, leaning on the desk. "Wasn’t your father an attorney in Caprica?’ She asked, following her hands in front of her waist as she recalled a previous conversation with the Admiral. "Yes, I told you that I didn’t get along with him very well" Bill replied, unsure of where Laura was going with her questioning. "I’m looking to form a committee and I need someone to head this committee and won’t get seduced by all the legalese." She confessed, pushing a strand of hair behind her ear as she felt Bill’s hand come to rest on her back, encouraging her to move closer to him. "Do you have any candidates?’ He asked, though he had a feeling he knew what was going to come next. "I do. I was thinking Lee. Like grandfather - like grandson" Laura thought aloud, not knowing how Bill would take the idea, after all, he just reminded her that he was hardly his father’s biggest fan and no doubt he would oppose the idea of Lee following the man into a legal career.

Though as usual, Laura was able to swing the man into the idea. “This is very difficult for me to say, but I’m going to go to the gym” Laura’s face contracted in protest to the idea, showing her uncertainty about the idea. “Prepare yourself, on its best days it smells like the inside of a shoe” Bill said. Her laugh was like music to his ears - the most joyous sound in the world, next to Pandora’s laughter of course.

Bill noticed the paleness of her skin, it no longer had that healthy glow that gave her a youthful appearance. “Take it easy Laura” He requested, his pleading eyes looking into hers for a moment as he watched her posture relax. He reached out to take the woman’s hand for a moment, giving it a squeeze as he leaned forward and pressed a gentle kiss against her forehead, feeling her body relax against his for a moment before he pulled away. “That’s easier said than done, Bill” She reminded him, her lips tugging up in a smile as she watched him back away before leaving, the hatch shutting behind him.  
Sighing to herself, Laura shut her eyes as she lowered her head. Her mask was slowly falling apart. Just as the pieces of her life seemed to be finally coming together, it looked like they were about to be ripped apart again. She silently dreaded her appointment with Cottle, it was as though she could already predict what the man was going to say. Though she knew that positive thoughts were necessary, and it wouldn’t take much for Pandora to catch on to her sudden change in behavior - she didn’t want to worry the child without reason. Pandora could not lose her mother; not after everything she had been forced to endure.

When Bill returned, he found Laura in a similar position to how he had the first time. Surrounded by a blockade of paperwork and engulfed in the strong aroma of freshly brewed coffee. She was living on caffeine.

Laura could still sense Bill’s concern and worry, after all, he was watching her as though she might fall apart into a thousand tiny little pieces at any moment. “I’m fine, Bill” She attempted to convince the man that she was perfectly fine, though Laura herself knew she was far from it. She could feel it in her very bones. Something was wrong; she just prayed to the Lords of Kobol that it wasn’t her cancer. Not now that she had Pandora and Bill. The Lords of Kobol were mentally torturing her, giving her a few short weeks of peace before throwing her head first into a sea of uncertainty.

"When are you seeing Cottle?" Bill asked, moving towards Laura as she sat herself down on the edge of the table. Work could wait; Laura’s health couldn’t. "Tomorrow afternoon" She confessed, attempting to not jump to the worse cause scenario. "You can come if you like, though you’re not to tell Pandora a thing until we get some sort of confirmation from Cottle about what’s wrong with me" She offered, though Laura suspected that the man would be coming whether she asked him to or not. Though, if Laura’s fears were to be confirmed, then she would rather have Bill with her for emotional support. She couldn’t push him away if it happened - they had come too far for that.

He could sense the anxious and uneasy atmosphere that was falling over them, perhaps now would be a better time to reflect on happier memories? “Do you ever think of New Caprica?” Bill asked, his mind slipping away to the few peaceful, care free days he had spent on New Caprica - they were forever engraved in his memory. “Ever think of what might have happened if it all had of worked?” He wondered, having seen a new side of the President during those days - the carefree, lighthearted and humorous side of Laura. He couldn’t deny the fact that his heart skipped a beat simply thinking about that time.

"Everything happens for a reason Bill, if we hadn’t of had the exodus from New Caprica, we might not have Pandora." Laura reminded him, her hand coming to rest against the man’s chest as she looked up at him with a mournful expression on her face. She couldn’t help but imagine what life may have been like on New Caprica if the cylons hadn’t invaded. She would be doing what she loved, teaching children, and perhaps Bill would have one day joined her on the surface; maybe by another twist of fate she would have found Pandora? "Everything happens for a reason" She repeated as she came to her conclusion.  
"Would you have built the cabin?" Bill wondered, having pictured the cabin on many occasions following that night of New Caprica, while Laura was on the surface and he was onboard Galactica. He wouldn’t admit that he had once sat out and planned it in his head. "I would have most definitely built that cabin" Laura replied, though she reminded herself that there was always the possibility of building one on Earth, except this time, she would have Bill and Pandora with her. "When we find Earth, I’ll build the cabin then. Make sure there’s plenty of room for Pandora to run around" Laura confirmed, though she felt like it could be a long lost dream at this stage. Was the prophet herself beginning to lose faith in finding Earth?

The scriptures had proclaimed that a ‘dying leader would guide the people to earth’. Though what if she was actually dying? The Gods were surely playing a wicked trick on her mind, tempting her with her heart’s greatest desire only to decide that her time was up. Would she ever get to build that cabin? The one that had plagued her dreams for over a year.

The metal hatch opened slightly, with the couple lowering their eyes to watch the young child struggle to push it back far enough to get into the room. Tori appeared behind the girl and held the hatch open long enough for Pandora to slip into the room. “Hello, little one” Laura greeted, getting off the edge of the table and standing to her full height once more, just in time for Pandora to stop at her side.

"How was daycare?" Bill asked, putting his arms out to pick the child up. Resting her head down against Bill’s shoulder as she smiled at her mother, relieved to have been reunited with Bill and Laura. "Hera and I painted" Pandora revealed, recalling her time in the daycare as Laura reached out to touch her forehead, wanting to check that her fever hadn’t returned. Thankfully, she seemed to be as right as rain.

"We need to go back to Colonial One, it seems our absence has been noticed" Laura admitted with a heavy sigh as she glanced at the clock. Tori had informed her that several of the delegates had unexpectedly called in to speak to her, only to be informed that she was again on board Galactia - the last thing she needed was for them to begin to believe the rumors. It didn’t help that Zarek seemed to have temporarily moved into her office for the day. Gods, she could swing for that man sometimes.

Pandora reached across to plant a kiss on her father’s cleanly shaven cheek, though it was clear to see that she was far from happy with the idea of leaving Galactica - and even more so Bill. Laura closed the small distance between herself and Bill by placing her soft lips over his, her hand coming to rest on his shoulder for a moment before she pulled away, mindful of Pandora’s presence in the room. “We’ll be back tomorrow afternoon” Laura promised, reaching out to take the child from Bill’s arms, allowing Pandora to wrap her legs across her waist and bury her head in her shoulder - no doubt already depressed at the idea of leaving Galactica. “Bye, Papa” Pandora proclaimed, resting her head down on her mother’s shoulder as she raised her hand to sadly wave at the man, her usual bubbly personality replaced with a helpless expression.

Bill watched as the pair’s silhouette disappeared down the hallway. Tomorrow would be a new day. It would either be filled with relief or anguish. Laura’s cancer was either back, throwing their happiness into a mask of uncertainty. On the flip-side, it could be something simple and curable, allowing the makeshift family to continue as normal. He prayed it was the latter. He couldn’t - he wouldn’t - lose Laura.

Stepping onto the raptor, Pandora’s usually bubbly personality seemed to be disappearing by the minute. Laura couldn’t deny that Pandora was definitely ‘Bill’s little girl’, with both of them becoming rather depressed when separated from one another. “Why do we have to leave Galactica?” Pandora wondered aloud, sitting beside her mother as the raptor began to pull out of Galactica’s hanger deck, beginning its journey back towards Colonial One. “The press wouldn’t be happy with it” Laura said, imagining what the media storm would be like, if the rumors were anything to go off, then Pandora and Bill would be dragged into a wildfire. Zarek would have a field day with it all, no doubt claiming that the Adama - Roslin partnership had went a step too far. Tori had shared several of the rumors going around the fleet. Some believed that the Adama-Roslin partnership was more than just in name, but rather in marriage as well - with others even claiming that Pandora was in fact their daughter. Ironically, Laura wished that such things were true.

"How would they know?" Pandora asked, her head resting down onto her mother’s knee as the temptation of sleep seemed to overcome her "Why can’t we just live with Papa, and not tell them?" The child’s curiosity was starting to show, reminding Laura of Bill. "If only we could, little one" Laura confessed, her hand coming to rest on the crown of Pandora’s head as she stroked the girl’s soft hair. In reality, nothing would make Laura happier. Without even knowing it, the trio had seemed to form a dysfunctional family unit for Pandora. Without even knowing it, Laura had found what she had yearned for since her sisters and father’s deaths. A family.

Though Pandora did have a point, would anyone notice their absence? Zarek. He seemed to be sneaking around for something, and Laura feared that she knew exactly what it was. By the time the Raptor docked in Colonial One, Laura was already counting down the hours until she would once again be on board Galactica; until the small family unit would be reunited. Until she would know if her cancer had returned.


	13. Dirty Hands

Laura felt as though she was bundled with nerves. Her anxiety was slowly creeping in, clawing away inside as she tried to push her fears to the deepest corners of her mind. Sitting at her writing desk, she attempted to distract herself by filling out the monotonous paperwork that had begun to engulf her desk. Occasionally, Laura would steal a glance at Pandora. The child was working away at the sofa, her fingers covered with pastel markers as she completed her latest masterpiece - the last two already proudly displayed at the corner of Laura’s office. Pandora was blissfully unaware of the chaos that could unfold, a small mercy that Laura was glad of. She prayed to the Lords of Kobol that her fears would not be confirmed.

As Tori rounded her desk, passing her the latest document requiring her signature, Laura caught something from the corner of her eye. Dropping her pen, she watched as the raptor spun in the air, flipping over itself as it continued its unsteady path towards Colonial One.

The next thing Laura knew, the entire ship had shook as though caught up in the epicenter of an earthquake. The folders collapsed from their resting point on the shelves, cluttering the floor while the lights blinked rapidly. Pushing her chair back, Laura stood up as the shaking finally stopped, the ship returning to its steady position once again. Looking towards the sofa, her eyes flashed with concern and fear when she noticed Pandora’s absence. Stepping forward, she stopped swiftly when she felt a pair of short arms wrap around her legs, as though clutching on for dear life. Her heart beat relaxed then and her stiff shoulders dropped. Pandora was fine. “Mama?” The child whimpered , her voice full of fear and confusion as she looked up at the woman with her eyes wide open. “Everything’s fine, Pandora” Laura promised, her hand resting on the girl’s thin hair as she attempted to comfort the child and soothe her fears.

The President turned her head as she heard a groan from behind her. Tori. Slipping out of Pandora’s hold, Laura crouched down beside her Chief of Staff as the younger woman scrunched her face up in pain, her breathing labored as she remained pushed up against the bookcase. Laura could see that her shoulder was out - that much was clear. Everything seemed to go by in a flash. The guards rushed into her office, shouting ‘Madame President’ in fear of what they may find, the fear leaving their body when they found the President without a scratch; gods only knew what Adama would do to them if something happened to the President under their watch. The next thing Laura knew, Cottle was on the floor of her office instructing her on how to help put Tori’s shoulder back into alinement. Thankfully Pandora had chosen that moment to retrieve her drawing from the sofa. As Cottle bandaged up the younger woman’s shoulder, Laura heard the heavy footsteps advancing towards them. Standing up, the President was mindful of the presence of her staff, the medics and her guards. Pandora on the other hand, seemed to throw caution out of the nearest airlock. The child ran as fast as her short legs could carry her, launching herself at the Admiral as he arrived at the door of the President’s chaotic and cluttered office. Catching Pandora, the Admiral placed her on his hip as though it was the most natural thing in the world, the child slipping her arms around Bill’s neck. Most of the staff played little attention to the display of affection, while several of the guard exchanged secretive glances.

"Are you okay?" Bill asked, his voice soft, attempting to keep their conversation strictly between the pair of them as he carried Pandora towards her mother. She nodded her head, her fingers playing with the lustrous golden Admiral badges of his uniform. "Just a little scared" The child admitted, feeling the man’s cheek come to rest against the crown of her head. The guards and staff moved around the office, moving through the clutter and debris as they carried folders, boxes and paperwork through to the lower end of Colonial One. Reaching out, Bill’s hand came to rest on the edge of Laura’s elbow, the affectionate act pulling the woman out of her train of thought. "Everything alright?" Bill asked, thanking the gods above that nothing had happened to either of them. He still couldn’t shake the fear that ran through every bone in his body when the call came through to the CIC that Colonial One had been involved in a collision with a raptor. His first thought had been of Laura and Pandora. On the raptor ride over, a thousand scenarios played through his head. He was thankful that none of them were proven right. "We’re fine" Laura said, the corner of her lips pushing up in a weak smile as she took Bill’s hand and allowed him to help her up.

Bill guided their way through the clutter and mess, taking them to the lower end of Colonial One, where Laura’s things were currently being moved down to. She couldn’t help but think that this was a little more than the distraction she had hoped for. “You know you’re always welcomed in one of my beds” Bill offered, knowing that it would make Pandora’s day, but also help ease Laura’s worries. If he could keep her by his side, then he could keep an eye on her until her appointment. “Can we, Mama?” Pandora asked, raising her head from her father’s shoulder as she batted her thick eyelashes at her mother as she looked at her with pleading eyes. If Laura was sick, then perhaps staying on Galactica would be for the best. Maybe this was all a god send in disguise? A sign. Nodding her head, Laura agreed. “Okay” She said, smiling at Bill as they came to a stop in the middle of the small, cluttered room. “I don’t see why not” Laura concluded, watching as a look of mutual joy and happiness graced Bill and Pandora’s features, both of them smiling towards her.

Laura asked one of her aids to pack an overnight bag for them, she could return to Colonial One in a day or two and get whatever else she needed then. Bill moved to collect Laura’s paperwork, holding it under his left arm as he set Pandora down, clutching her hand while Laura took the child’s other hand as they headed down towards the waiting raptor.

It seemed Pandora had gotten her wish. Galactica would be their temporary home.

As the day passed by, Laura’s anxiety only increased. Standing in the center of Bill’s quarters, she swayed from left to right in order to occupy herself in a bid to think of anything other than her appointment with Cottle. Stepping into the room, Bill placed his paperwork on the table as he took a glance at the clock, they would have to leave any minute now. “I’ve asked Lee and Kara to keep an eye on her” Bill confessed, knowing that Laura wouldn’t feel comfortable leaving Pandora with just anyone. He watched as the woman readjusted her blouse for the hundred time that morning, smoothing out non-existent creases in the silk material. Nodding her head, Laura attempted to garner any courage she had left in her soul. She watched as Pandora sat at the foot of the couch, twisting two rubber bands together in a bid to form yet another one of her bracelets.

"This is my son, Lee, and our friend, Kara" He introduced the couple of the child, who curiously looked from the side of her mother’s legs, slowly stepping forward as examined the young man before her, even though she had briefly met him before. "You still look like Papa" Pandora concluded as she stop before the young man, who knelt in front of her. "Do you think so?" Lee asked, attempting to pose by resting his elbow on his knee and placing his chin down on his closed fist. Pandora chuckled at his behavior and giggled, nodding her head happily. "Just like Papa" She said, before turning her attention to the blonde woman beside him.

"Let’s see what this mini viper pilot can do" Kara proclaimed, moving to kneel in front of the child, allowing Pandora to wrap her arms around her neck and rest against her back before Kara stood, the child’s carefree laughter filled the stone grey corridors as Kara gave her a piggyback, heading in the direction of the hanger deck. "Don’t let my daughter fly any vipers!" Laura warned, raising an eyebrow as she shook her head at Lee who smirked before shaking his own head. "I can’t promise anything, Madame President" He teased before jogging down the corridor after the floods of laughter.

Laura slipped her hand through Bill’s arm, her happiness draining from her body as she shut her eyes for a moment, taking a deep breath and she remembered what they had to do next. “Everything will be okay, Laura. Whatever happens” Bill promised, his free hand coming to rest over Laura’s as she opened her eyes, his assuring smile brought some colour back to her cheeks. “You have me and Pandora, and we aren’t going anywhere” He said, attempting to soothe her fears as he held onto her hand, guiding the way to Doctor Cottle’s infirmary. “I know” Laura admitted, forcing a smile as she tried to swallow her fear as she clutched onto the man’s arm for support.

It was now or never.

Laura sat on the edge of the sterile white bed, it offered little comfort when surrounded by the sense of doom and depression. This could only end in one way. Laura knew it wasn’t going to be good news, she could feel it in her very bones. Bill however, attempted to stay positive, even though he knew that he had to be realistic. “Everything will be okay” Bill remained her, regardless of what the outcome of their visit would be. Laura couldn’t help but compare everything to the last time. The last time, she had been all alone when going to the doctors for her diagnosis. This time, she had Bill holding her hand through every step of the way. For that, she couldn’t be more thankful. It was in the face of tragedy and misery that one truly sees what is important in life. Clutching her free hand around their joint hands, Laura let out a shaking breath as she attempted to calm herself, forcing her lips up into a weak smile.

As he stepped into the room, Cottle acted as though the pairs’ behavior was natural, after all, he was well aware of the rumors running around the fleet - in fact, he wouldn’t be shocked if some of them were true. Though he wouldn’t have the nerve to ask, unless he wanted to be dragged to the nearest airlock by the President. Taking the needle, he held Laura’s wrist in order to keep her arm out straight as he rested it against her soft skin before pushing it in, the crimson liquid filling the syringe. Shutting her eyes, Laura attempted to block out the pain that rang through her arm as the needle pushed in further; instead she focused on the feeling of Bill’s hand clutching her own, squeezing it in a bid to distract her from the pain. Cottle pulled the needle back, the metal catching the light before he put the lid over it. “We’ll get these tests rushed through, it should take no longer than an hour” He revealed, his eyes focused on the folder in his hand as he wrote down a series of notes while walking out of the makeshift compartment.

Laura sighed, her heart feeling heavy in her chest as she rested her head down on Bill’s shoulders, her eyes feeling heavy as she forced herself to relax in his arms. Everything would be okay; regardless of what the results were. Pulling her legs up under her, she allowed Bill to wrap his arms around her as she blocked out the world around them. “Everything will be okay” He promised, attempting to be strong enough for both of them. Losing Laura would be like someone turning the lights off, leaving his life in complete darkness. She was a fighter. She had beaten cancer once; and she seemed to have a talent at defying the odds.

Now, they could only wait.

Lee had all to all but restrain Kara from taking Pandora onto a viper, reminding her that the President - and his father - would be a little more than annoyed with Kara if anything happened to even a single hair on Pandora’s head. He was positive that the President might even use the services of the nearest airlock. As they returned to the Admiral’s private quarters, Kara glanced at the clock above the man’s desk. “I’m going to go and get some food, any requests?” Kara asked, throwing her jacket over her shoulders as she made her way towards the door. “Something eatable!” Lee called after her, shaking his head as he heard the woman let out a snigger as she muttered something under her breath.

"You’re Papa’s son?" It was Pandora who broke the comfortable silence that had fallen over the pair, looking up at the man with curious eyes as held her plush elephant in the corner of her arm. Lee had heard from several of the crew - as well aas what he had gathered from the rumors running around the fleet - that Pandora was calling the Admiral ‘Papa’, but hearing the child referring to him as ‘Papa’ for the first time was strange. Lee knew he had to get used to it though. "Does that mean you’re my brother?" Pandora asked cautiously, looking up at the man beside her. "I guess it does" Lee admitted, although he had never saw the situation in that way. However, he wouldn’t deny that he had always wanted a baby sister to protect, teach and tease. Though he had quickly dropped that dream not long after Zak was born, when his parent’s marriage went quickly down hill. Perhaps Pandora was a second chance for them all? The little sister he never had.

Reaching out, he patted the child’s shoulder and smiled. “You know, Pandora, I always wanted a sister” He confessed, beaming down at her as she gleefully dropped her crayons and turned to him. “Well, now you have one!” Pandora exclaimed, giving Lee her full attention as she pushed a strand of hair behind her ears. Taking the rubber breaded bracelet off her wrist, she held it out for the man. “It’s a tred..tra..tradition” The child stumbled and stuttered over the word before explaining her actions. “Mama and Papa have one each, so if you’re my brother, you need to have one too” She said, shrugging her shoulders before returning her attention to her drawing. “Should I make Kara one?” Pandora wondered aloud as she picked up the midnight blue crayon and attacked her page with it. Lee couldn’t get over Pandora’s unconditional willingness to accept him as ‘her brother’. She had seemed to instantly fall into the daughter role in Laura and Bill’s lives, no doubt playing the role of cupid in their love life. “If you’d like” He said, contentedly watching the child as she gathered her rubber bands and pencils in an attempt to make another bracelet.

By the time Kara had returned with their food, Pandora had given up all hope of making another bracelet and abandoned her work at the foot of the couch. “Is it eatable?” Lee asked, raising an eyebrow as he teased the blonde viper pilot before sitting down at the table. “Why don’t you see for yourself?” Kara hit back, though allowed a teasing tone to slip through her voice.

Pandora was satisfied with simply watching the pair in front of her bicker like overgrown children as she munched away at her food. Glancing at the clock, she wondered just how much longer she would have to stay with Lee and Kara. It was getting late after all. Mama never missed bedtime; and that was less than an hour away.

Time itself seemed to be dragging on. Each second feeling like a lifetime. It was an hour before the midnight blue curtains were pulled back, signalling the Doctor’s return. Laura watched with bated breath as Cottle walked into the room. Though his mournful expression was all the confirmation she needed. Stopping in front of the couple, he took a deep breath before speaking. “It’s positive. I’m sorry, Madame President” He announced, bowing his head in respect as he allowed the realisation of his words to set in. In that moment, Laura felt as though her entire world had fallen in on her. It was only the feeling of Bill’s hand resting on her shoulder and the gentle kiss that he pressed against her forehead that brought her back to life.

"Come back tomorrow and we’ll form a treatment plan" Cottle suggested, though he suspected that Laura wanted nothing more than to be in the comfort of the Admiral’s quarters, in the safety of Bill’s sturdy arms, with Pandora near by. Nodding his head in respect at both the President and Admiral, the Doctor backed out of the room, shutting over the curtain behind him to give the couple some privacy.

As the room fell silent, Laura tried to bottle up her emotions. The gods were surely testing her. She prayed that this was all some horrible nightmare that she would wake up from, safe in Bill’s arms with Pandora sleeping nearby. As Bill stood up from the bed, she slipped her hand through his arm and allowed him to guide her out of the sick bay, her face emotionless, as though frozen in time as they walked through the hallways.

The journey back to their quarters was silent. Laura feared for Pandora. Laura feared for Bill. Laura feared for herself. The prophecy was half-true now - she was the dying leader. Hopelessness and a fear of the unknown clouded her heavy heart as they turned the corner of the deserted, cold grey corridors. She forced herself to hold the pieces of her shattered soul together as the hatch door opened to reveal an impatient Pandora.

"Mama!" Pandora exclaimed happily, launching herself at the woman, who picked her up and placed her on her slender hip, pressing an affectionate kiss against her forehead. Lee watched as his father and Laura stepped over the threshold with Pandora, he could notice the sudden shift in their moods, but put it down to simply being the untold levels of stress resting on their shoulders. Laura was probably only tired. "Well, Admiral, the kid sure has your skills when it comes to piloting a viper" Kara casually stated, making her presence known from her spot on the couch, crossing her ankles as she crossed her arms. Laura glared at the woman, while Bill looked like a cat caught in the blinding headlights of a car. "Kara!" He exclaimed, looking as though his blood was beginning to boil. "I’m only kidding with you, old man" Kara announced, laughing slightly to herself at the reactions she had achieved from the President and Admiral. "If anyone needs me, I’ll be in the rec room" She said, pushing herself up from the couch and walking towards the child in Laura’s arm. "We will be viper training as soon as you turn sixteen" Kara promised the child, earning a giggle and a beaming smile from the child, who looked satisfied with the blonde woman’s compromise.

"Admiral, Madame President" Kara said, nodding her head respectfully at the leaders of the fleet before making her way out of the room, signaling for Lee to follow her. It seemed Kara had noticed the exact same thing as Lee; although, she decided that it was simply the Admiral and President’s stress levels going through the roof, and that spending an hour or so with Pandora would cure their problems. "Thank you Kara, Lee" Bill said, turning to look at the pair as they left the room. Laura still remained mute.

Walking over to the couch, Laura lowered herself down, resting Pandora on her knee while Bill disappeared into the corner of his room, lifting the heavy glass cap off the whiskey container and filling two small glasses. “Mama, what’s wrong?” Pandora asked curiously, sensing a change in her mother’s demeanor as she turned herself to face the room, reaching out to touch the heads of her mother’s wave like hair. “Nothing, little one” Laura stated, wishing that her lies could be the truth. The child raised her eyebrow, as though to show her lack of faith in her mother’s answer before she rested her head against the woman’s chest, yawning as she shut her eyes for a moment. “If you say so, Mama” Pandora said, using her mother’s chest as a makeshift pillow as her eyes became heavy, struggling to stay over as sleep came over her.

Bill sat himself down beside Laura, placing her glass of whiskey on the walnut table in front of them before watching Pandora as the child slipped into the land of sleep - no doubt dreaming of piloting a viper. He was thankful that the child was ignorant to the events that would unfold in the coming days and weeks.

Laura wrapped her arms around Pandora’s back, feeling the tears forming in the corner of her eyes. Her shoulders shook as she let out an unsteady, shaking breath, her arms tightening around Pandora’s back as she clutched her child close to her chest. Laura’s frail hand came to rest on the back of Pandora’s soft chocolate brown hair. Burying her head into the child’s shoulder, she attempted to silence her own river of tears. Pandora couldn’t lose her mother. The gods had tempted her with everything she had ever wanted, only for her cancer to return and for everything to be snatched away from her, right from under her very nose.

Reaching out, Bill took ahold of the pair, holding Laura close as she clutched the sleeping Pandora to her. “We will find Earth; together. We’ll build your cabin.” Bill promised, shutting his eyes as he held the two most important women in his life protectively in his arms. Laura would fight this battle and win, just like she had done the last time. This time was different. She had Bill and Pandora now.

She had to fight this. She had to win. Laura had no other option


	14. Maelstrom

Laura was still fast asleep, exhausted from her emotional turmoil, while Bill pottered around the room, arranging his uniform with military precision. He had prayed to the Lords of Kobol that it was all just a horrible nightmare, created from his worst imaginable fears. They were not of his own demise, or of Earth being nothing more than a myth; but that some sort of harm would come to the small family unit that he now treasured close to his heart.

Pandora appeared into the doorway, her eyes still filled with sleep as she clasped her cotton blanket in her hand, her plush elephant held under her arm. “Looks like sleeping beauty is awake” Bill declared as he sat down on the edge of the sofa, patting the space beside him for the child to sit down.

"Is Mama okay?" Pandora asked curiously, a look of concern masking her face as she rested her soft cheek against her the man’s shoulder. The child could sense that something was wrong, after all, both of the adults were acting strange, and there was a notable aroma of despair hanging over their heads - even Pandora could notice it. "She’ll be fine, Pandy. How about you keep a close eye on her for me?" Bill suggested, brushing off the child’s concern with his best attempt at a charismatic smile. There was no need to worry the girl yet, not until they knew exactly what they were dealing with.

"Okay, Papa" She promised, deciding that it would be best not to ask anymore questions. Wrapping her arms around the man’s neck, she buried her head in his shoulder as he stood from the couch, walking towards the sleeping area of their quarters. He placed Pandora down in the bunk beside the sleeping woman, watching as the child curled up beside her, Laura instinctively accepted the child into her arms, even in her sleep-like state.

He couldn’t help but think of how much his life had changed - for the better of course. Laura and Pandora filled a gap in his heart that he hadn’t even know existed; they made things complete for him. Perhaps that’s what made the idea of losing Laura all the more difficult to accept.

As he adjusted the top buttons of his shirt, the gold band on his finger caught the dim light of his office area. It didn’t seem right to wear it anymore. Carolanne was in the past, another lifetime ago. Taking the cold metal band off his finger, he placed it down into the deep drawer of his desk, leaving it in eternal darkness.

With one last look at the sleeping figures in the bunk, Bill set off to do his work, content that the pair was safe and well.

"Are you ready to go?" Bill asked as he pulled back the hatch of the door as he stepped into their quaters, watching as Laura readjusted her blazer for no doubt the tenth time in as many minutes. He could almost feel the anxiety rolling off her like waves. Nodding her head, Laura attempted to stay calm as she accepted the hand that Pandora was holding out for her. She was thankful now more than ever that the child couldn’t understand anything that was happening. A small mercy.

As they walked down the quiet cold, grey hallways of Galactica, Pandora stood between the pair, her head moving from left to right as she tried to divide her attention between them both. Holding on to Laura’s hand, she looked up as she caught sight of a familiar blonde viper pilot ahead of them. “Kara!” She exclaimed, jumping up slightly in her black patent shoes as the woman approached them, the child’s smile reaching her ears as she eagerly waited on Kara.

"Hey kid" Kara greeted, stopping in front of the infamous trio. "Admiral, Madame President" She said, respectfully addressing the couple in front of her with a nod of her head before returning her attention to the child. "Gotten any miles in yet kid?" Kara teased, moving down to the child’s height and watching as the girl shook her head in a manner that reminded her of Lee; annoyed, irritated and unamused. "Papa says I have to be at least…sixteen" Pandora confessed, looking up at the man beside her as though to remind him of his earlier warnings.

Pulling herself back up to her full height, the viper pilot reached inside the interior pocket of her jacket and pulled out a golden figure of a mermaid. “For your model ship, Pandora said you needed one final piece” Kara explained, holding the object out for Bill to take, looking rather pleased with herself. “Thank you” Bill accepted the figure from the woman, holding it in his free hand as he gave Pandora’s hand a gentle squeeze, silently thanking her as well. “It was good to see you, Admiral, Madame President, Nugget” Kara said, bidding her farewells as she earned a playful giggle from Pandora.

As the blonde pilot stepped around them, heading to the steps behind them, Bill turned on his heel to face her once more. “What do you hear?” Bill asked, gazing at the young woman in front of him, admiring who far she had come in a few short years. He guessed that being faced with tragedy after tragedy forced a person to change. “Nothing but the rain” Kara informed him, her lips teased a smile as she allowed her eyes to linger on the makeshift family for a moment longer before she turned on her heel and continued her journey through Galactica.

Bill laid his hand on the small of Laura’s back, guiding her through the shadows of the corridor towards Cottle’s office. Last thing any of them needed was someone seeing them in the sickbay, the Lords of Kobol would only know the sort of rumors that could start, and Bill thought that they had enough rumors to last a lifetime - or two.

Stepping into the privacy of Cottle’s office, Laura was glad that Pandora was too young to understand any of what was to come - something she was eternally thankful for. Sitting herself down in the low sitting, leather chair, she watched as the greying doctor sat himself down at his desk, dropping a series of test results and highlighter filled papers. “Do we have a plan?” Bill asked cautiously, throwing a glance at Pandora, who sat on the small sofa at the right hand side of the room, content to look over the book that Lee had bought her.

"Doloxan" Cottle replied, remembering how Laura had protested to using the drug last time, arguing that she had watched her mother waste away for two years on the drug. With a heavy heart, Laura stole a glance over at Pandora then at Bill. If Doloxan was going to be her best chance, then she would take it. This time she had something to fight for. In fact, she had two people to fight for. "With chamalla?" Laura inquired, raising an eyebrow at the man across from her. Cottle waited a moment before reluctantly nodding his head in acceptance. "With chamalla" He confirmed, looking down at the ruffle of papers. "If you come by the tomorrow, we can start your Doloxan treatment" He revealed, deciding it would be best for the President to begin her treatment as soon as possible. The sooner they started, the sooner they could kill the cancer. The sooner they started, the better the chance of Laura recovering.

Nodding her head, Laura accepted the treatment plan. “Tomorrow” She accepted, feeling her nerves starting to get the better of her as she anxiously folded her hands on her lap. As Bill stood from his seat, she followed behind him, watching Pandora as the child skipped beside the Admiral as though she didn’t have a single care in the world. Oh, to be so young and innocent. Watching the pair with a content smile, Laura knew had something to fight for this time. Her family.

Stopping at the hatch to Bill’s quarters, Laura turned to look at the man as he sighed beside her, noticing the two guards advancing towards him. “I’m needed in the CIC” He admitted, reaching out to lightly squeeze Laura’s shoulder. “Don’t wait up if I’m late” He warned her, knowing how tired she was getting day by day. She deserved at least one early night. “I’ll not make any promises” Laura confessed before watching the man head down the hallway. It was amazing how much thinking one could do when their death was approaching. All the regrets. All the ‘What if?’ scenarios. Though those were thoughts for another day, another time.

Pushing open the hatch, Laura allowed the child to enter first as she headed over to the desk at the center of the room, sitting herself down on the cold unwelcoming wooden chair, bellowing in her own thoughts.

Laura glanced over the rim of her glasses, her eyes resting on Pandora, watching as the child lay on her stomach in the middle of the room, an array of colouring books and pastel crayons surrounding her as she kicked her feet up in the air as she scribbled across the paper with her crayons - a gift from Lee.

She was glad of Pandora’s ignorance to her illness, after all, the last thing she wanted was to worry the child. Having Pandora in her life only made the reappearance of her illness even harder to accept.

Pulling off her glasses, Laura sat them down on the desk beside her as she buried her head into her aging hands. “Mama” The small voice beside her pulled her out of her chaotic train of thought, causing her to lift her head and look down at the child beside her. “What is it, Pandy?” Laura asked, lifting her glasses up and readjusting them on her nose, watching as her eyes focused on the child. “Papa said I had to keep an eye on you” Pandora revealed as she casually dropped her head into her mother’s lap as she wrapped her arms around the woman’s waist. “Did he now?” She asked with a raised eyebrow, leaning her tired back against the chair as her growing fatigue seemed to wash over her like waves.

Pandora nodded her head in acknowledgement. “What’s wrong?” The child’s curious, concerned voice filled the room as she looked up at her mother with a confused expression. Children always could sense when something was wrong. Laura wondered how they would ever explain it all to Pandora. “Mama just isn’t feel very well at the minute” Laura said in an attempt to brush away the child’s concern. She had watched her own mother go through the hells of cancer. That alone had been agony. Laura wouldn’t wish that pain on even Gaius Baltar - let alone someone as important to her as Pandora.

"Can I make it better?" Pandora wondered aloud in a small voice, playing with the buttons of her mother’s silk blouse. Laura had to resist the urge to fall apart right there and then. Feeling her bottom lip beginning to tremble, Laura took a deep breath, feeling the tears beginning to pool in the corner of her eyes as she tightened her hold on Pandora. "If only you could, little one. If only you could" She whispered, resting her cheek down against the crown of Pandora’s head.

Why were the gods being so cruel to her? What was the purpose of their wicked game?

By the time Bill returned from the CIC, Laura was putting Pandora to bed. Hearing the hatch door opening behind her, Laura finished tucking Pandora in before standing to her full height. “Have you eaten yet?” She began to speak, though stop upon turning around to look at Bill, seeing the state of the man at the other side of the room.

Laura knew that look all too well.

It was the same look Bill wore on the faithful day when he came to tell her that Billy was dead. It was as though all the happiness in the world had been drained away, the temperature of the room seemed to drop as Bill walked inside.

"Who?" Laura asked, swallowing her words as her breathing became slightly labored, fearful of the man’s answer. "Kara" Bill breathed, as though he couldn’t believe his own words. Laura let out an audible gasp, her breath catching in the back of her throat as she attempt to comprehend the meaning of what Bill had just said. "Kara?" She asked, as though searching for some form of confirmation. Kara couldn’t be dead; could she? The quick tongue, no nonsense viper pilot that Bill saw as the daughter he never had.

She couldn’t be dead.

Yet she was.

Reaching forward, she moved to take the man in her arms, allowing him to bury his head in the curls laying against her neck; as though he was trying to hide himself away from the horrors of the world they had found themselves in. Kara was one of those people that Laura believed would be immortal - cheating death on a regular basis. Death had visited today, and taken Kara as his victim.

As Bill’s shoulders shook against her own, she could feel her curls fill with his tears. How was she ever going to tell Pandora? The child worshiped the ground that Kara had once walked on. Declaring she wanted to be a viper pilot just like Kara. Would Pandora even remember Kara when she would be old enough to be a viper pilot?

That night, Laura rested her head down on the man’s chest, listening to the steady beating of his heart under her ear as she pulled the covers around them. She attempted to seek some form of comfort from the man, though her grief was nothing compared to him. Whether he was willing to accept it or not, he had lost more than just a pilot. He had lost a daughter. He had lost yet another member of his small family.

"Laura" He spoke for the first time that evening, hoping to gain her attention. She hummed slightly in response to show that she was still awake. "Marry me" He spoke, his voice gentle as his fingers came to rest on the ends of Laura’s fire kissed hair.

The fear of losing Laura, Kara’s death and his role as Pandora’s father figure showed him that life was too short to wait for anything. Not when the cylons could drop in on them any day; and it could be game over. End of the line.

Laura’s eyes widened, thinking for a split second that she was hearing things in her advancing age. Had Bill really just asked her to marry him? As the man waited silently for a response, Laura attempted to settle the thoughts that raced around her troubled mind. Yes or no?

"Yes, I will marry you, Bill" Laura breathed as she lifted her gaze to the man’s face, watching as the realisation dawned on his face before she pressed a kiss against his lips. Death had visited them that day. Yet even the darkest of days had a silver lining.


	15. The Son Also Rises

"What is ‘married’?" Pandora wondered aloud, her curious voice filling the Admiral’s private quarters, her eyes glazed with wonder and awe. "You’re married when…" Laura started to speak but faltered when she started to struggle to explain such a complex subject to a four year old - even one as intelligent as Pandora.

"It’s when you promise, in front of the Lords of Kobol, to love someone - you promise to love them for the rest of your life, no matter what happens. It’s the sort of love you only get once in lifetime" Bill explained, picking up from where Laura had left off. Laura could feel her lips pulling up into an amused smile. Bill was a true romantic. No matter how much he might try to deny it. He was romantic at heart.

Laura reached her hand out to brush her slender fingertips over Bill’s clenched knuckles. It couldn’t have been easy losing Kara. Bill loved her; she was the daughter he never had. Pandora idolised her like an older sister. Laura herself had come to care for the pilot, after all, she was a member of the dysfunctional family unit that she and Bill had created.

Now she was gone in the blink of an eye. Bill had been helpless to protect her.

"We have to go to Colonial One today, will you get your bag packed while I get ready?" Laura asked, watching as Pandora chewed the last bite of her toast before leaving the table with a skip to her step. How would they ever explain it all to her? Her cancer. Kara. Death.

"We have to tell her" Bill announced, his fingers lifted the cardboard folder of the personnel file in front of him. "How?" Laura asked, pleading for an answer to the question that had plagued her mind throughout the night. "We have to talk to her" Bill concluded, looking at his fiancee with a somber expression. "I’ll do it" Laura offered, knowing Bill couldn’t handle having to relive those memories of Kara’s death. "Thank you" He breathed, glad that Laura had relieved him of that duty.

Standing from her seat, Laura rested her hand down on the man’s tense shoulder and looked down at the contents of the folder. “An interesting read no doubt” Laura joked, hoping to lighten the atmosphere a little as she watched him flick through the pages of Kara’s personnel file - it now read like a bittersweet memoir. Squeezing Bill’s shoulder one last time, hoping to offer him some form of comfort, Laura slipped out of the room with Pandora tailing behind her.

The raptor ride to Colonial One had been a silent one. Pandora spent most of the time staring out the raptor’s windows at the surrounding ship - after all she was a curious child. Laura meanwhile spent the raptor ride attempting to come up with the best and most sensitive method of explaining the grim concept of death to her innocent and blissfully ignorant child. If only she could stay that way. Laura had hoped that she would have been able shield Pandora from the pain of life and the mystery of death for a least a few more years. How would she explain that Kara would never come back? That Kara would never teach her how to fly a viper or how she would never carry her around on her shoulders through the hallways of Galactica. How would she explain to Pandora that she had essentially lost her sister?

Laura mourned for the lost moments and what could have been.

Walking through the compartments of Colonial One, Laura spotted Tori standing at the door to her office. She had forgotten. It had completely left her mind. The selection. Today, she was meant to select the judges for Gaius Baltar’s trial. Frak. After the last twenty four hours, Laura craved nothing more than throwing Baltar out of the nearest airlock herself. A woman could always dream.

"Do you have all the names?" Laura inquired as she stepped into her office, both Pandora and Tori trailing behind her. "In here" Tori replied, lifting up the clear glass bowl which was filled with folded parchment. "Will you get the others to come in please?" Laura requested as she settled herself down on the leather chair behind her writing desk.

As Tori went in search of the other staff, Laura turned to look at the child who had settled herself into a comfortable position on the sofa at the corner of the room. The child was content to play with her bright assortment of crayons and parchment. “Are you okay, Pandy?” Laura asked softly, concern lacing her voice as she watched the beaming child continue to work on another one of her drawings. “Of course, Mama” Pandora answered, looking up at her mother with a bewildered expression. Why wouldn’t she be okay?

Laura shut her eyes for a moment. How was she ever going to break the news to her? It would kill Pandora. She had never suffered heartbreak or loss before. Her heart was whole and pure. Laura doubted that she had the strength to burst the blissful bubble of happiness that Pandora lived in.

Tori walked back into the office, a small number of personnel coming behind her to witness the selection ceremony. The black haired woman sat the bowl down in front of Lara, allowing the woman to reach inside and select the first name.

Unfolding the piece of parchment, Laura read out the name. “Captain Elias Meeker, Gideon” Setting it aside, she reached in to take the second name, slowly unfolding it before adjusting her glasses. “Captain Andrew Kerr, Aurora” She read before once again selecting another name - the third and final one.

Undoing the folds of the parchment, she began to read out the name. “Admiral -” Her breath caught in the back of her throat as she took a closer look at the name spelt out in thick black text on the crisp white paper. This was the last thing they needed.

"Admiral William Adama - Galactica"She breathed, placing the parchment down flat in front of her. This was the last thing that she needed. The pressure of a trial. The emotional rollercoster they had been forced to endure. Now this.

It was Pandora’s voice that broke the silence.”Papa?” She asked, slipping off the sofa and walking across to the room to stand beside her mother’s desk, looking down at the name staring back at them on the parchment. Resting her hand on Pandora’s back, Laura sighed to herself.

When it rained, it poured.

Tori collected the parchment and lifted the bowl with her left arm while shooing the staff out of the room with her other arm, hoping to offer the President some much needed privacy.

"Pandy" Laura began, moving to pick the girl up and place the child on her knee. "I have to tell you something" The President confessed, dropping a gentle kiss on the crown of Pandora’s head before continuing. "You know how we age and get older?" She asked, waiting until Pandora nodded before she continued. "Well, we only age for so long until we fall asleep for good"Laura wished that she didn’t have to do this alone, but it was too soon for Bill to talk about Kara - too soon for him to relieve the horror and trauma of losing her. "Like sleeping beauty?" Pandora wondered aloud as she played with a strand of her mother’s fire kissed hair, curling it around her small finger. "Except, some people fall asleep before they grow old, and they don’t wake up again. Pandora…" Laura stopped, tightening her hold of the child as she kissed the crown of her head once more. She could feel the tears threatening to fall from the corner of her eyes.

"Kara’s fallen asleep" She whispered, feeling the girl rest her head against her chest as she breathed heavily. "Is she gone, Mama?" Pandora’s voice was broken, filled with sadness and mourning for the loss of the blonde viper pilot. Her usual joyful and gleeful voice was filled with despair and grief. Laura could only nod her head in silent confirmation.

The pair sat together, wrapped in each other’s arms, surrounded by nothing but the daunting silence that was broken by the occasional sniffle or muffled cry from Pandora. The noise itself was enough to break Laura’s heavy heart.

Life wasn’t fair.

That was how Bill found them when he arrived on Colonial One. He knew right away that Laura had told Pandora.

As he stepped into the room, Pandora raised her head and sniffled as she silently held her arms out for Bill to take her. “Papa” She muttered as the man gathered her up from her mother’s arms and held her close. “I miss Kara” She declared truthfully as she rested her head down on the man’s shoulder, shutting her tired eyes for a moment.

Laura knew now more than ever, that she had to fight her cancer. Bill had lost a daughter. Pandora had lost a sister. The last thing they needed was to lose a wife and mother. She had no other choice.

Bill simply nodded his head. While he was relieved that Laura had told Pandora about Kara, he knew it couldn’t have been easy for her. He prayed to the Lords of Kobol that he would never have to give the same talk to Pandora; only with Laura as death’s unwilling victim and not Kara. If there was any mercy left in the universe, then the Lords of Kobol would spare him of that heavy burden - a cross he doubted he could carry.

"I love you, Papa" Pandora reminded him as she cuddled into his shirt. "I love you too, Pandy" He declared, glancing from his fiancee to the girl in his arms. How many times had he wanted to tell Kara that he cared about her, that she was a central part of his family? He would never get to tell her that.

Laura remained silent throughout the affectionate exchange. They would be fine. The three of them would batter their way through the storm together. “How are you feeing?” Laura asked as she stood from her chair and rounded the Victorian writing desk in order to stand beside the pair. She was worried about Bill. She knew all too well what grief could do to a man. Even one as strong as Bill.

Though she sensed that something else was wrong.

"Someone put an explosive in the viper transporting Baltar’s lawyer. The pilots are okay - just a scratch or two - the lawyer on the other hand isn’t" Bill revealed, watching as Laura buried her head in her hands with an exasperated look. "Frak" She mumbled under her breath. As if she didn’t already have enough to deal with.

By the time the press conference about the accident had wrapped up, it was already past dinner time. Bill watched in displeasure as Laura sat herself down in front of the mountain of paperwork - no doubt trying to settle herself down to a night of signing forms and reading through suggestions from the Quorum. “Come with me” He said, reaching down to pick Pandora’s backpack up with one hand while retrieving Laura’s leather tote with the other.

"We’re going to have dinner with Lee, Saul and Dee" He informed Laura, knowing that the dinner would kill two birds with one stone. Laura needed to relax and they had to tell the others about their engagement at some stage.

Resting his hand on the small of Laura’s back, he allowed Pandora to guide the way through Colonial One and towards the raptor as Laura left without protesting. The last forty eight hours had been hell for them all. Now, they needed each other more than ever.

Would there ever be a silver lining to their constant series of unfortunate events?

New Caprica. Laura’s cancer. Kara’s death.

The list was endless.

Laura had finished setting the table when a knock came from the metal hatch. “I’ll get it!” Pandora announced, all but bouncing towards the door, her feet padding across the carpet as she went. The idea of seeing the other three had cheered her up. “Uncle Saul!” Pandora exclaimed as she opened the hatch to reveal the XO. Launching herself at the man, she wrapped her arms around the man’s legs in a deadlock. Laura had to chuckle at the fact that Saul had the manners to knock the hatch door before entering. It seemed he was being a little more mindful of the fact that both she and Pandora now shared Bill’s quarters with him.

"Hello, Saul" Laura turned to look at the man, smiling at him as she tried to contemplate how the man might react to their news. She had to stop herself from laughing as she watched Saul attempt to free himself from Pandora’s fierce hold. "I’ll go and tell Bill that you’re here" She told the XO before turning on her heel and heading into the kitchen in search of the Admiral of the Colonial Fleet.

"Saul’s here" Laura announced as she stopped by his side, admiring the food he had just finished plating up. "What do you want to tell them?" Bill asked as he poured a healthy glass of whiskey to give to Saul, guessing that the man might just need it.

"Just the engagement, I…I don’t want to tell them about the other thing yet, not until we know more" Laura pleaded, knowing there had been enough sadness and death around them already without having to add her own to the list. "Whatever you want, Laura" Bill reminded her, his hand coming to rest on her tense shoulder for a moment before reaching up to stroke her cheek. Laura bit her lip in a bid to keep the tears at bay. She couldn’t get emotional now.

Hearing an extra pair of voices entering their quarters, Laura stepped forward to collect two of the warm plates, carrying them towards the table. “Hello Lee, Dee” Laura greeted the younger couple with a forced smile and a nod before retrieving Pandora from an overwhelmed Dee.

"Good evening, Madame President, Admiral" Dee spoke shyly, nodding her head at the older couple, unsure of where to look in her unfamiliar surroundings. The Admiral may have been her father in law, but she had never once been in his quarters on a private matter, especially when the President was there as well. "Laura" The President corrected, after all Dee was going to be her daughter in law - even if the younger woman wasn’t aware of that fact just yet. "Laura" Dee repeated, allowing her tense and anxious shoulders to drop and relax. Perhaps this wouldn’t be too bad after all?

Bill returned with the remaining plates, setting them down at their allocated spots before glancing up to greet their guests. “Hello son, Dee” He spoke as he rounded the table and took his rightful seat at the top. Saul silently sat himself down at the other end of the table while Laura took her seat beside Bill with Pandora on her other side while the younger couple sat across from the President.

"This looks delicious" Lee confessed, looking longingly at the hearty meal. With the hectic lifestyle that he lived, Lee couldn’t even remember the last time he had a full, tasting meal - his last sit down dinner with someone other than Dee or the viper pilots had been when Ellen first appeared. Oh, how things had changed since then. He just hoped this dinner wouldn’t be as eventful a the last. "As much as I like any excuse to sit down and eat - what are we celebrating?" Lee wonder aloud, looking between his father and the man’s new house guest. He had his suspicions, though he wasn’t stupid enough to voice them to the President of the Colonials or his father. However, he knew his father wasn’t the sort of hold a dinner for no apparent reason.

"Well…" Bill began, reaching out to clasp his hand over Laura’s on top of the walnut dinning table. Pandora allowed a knowing smile to slip onto her lips as she swung her legs from side to side, feeling the excitement bubbling inside her. "Laura and I are getting married" He announced, still cautious of how the three may react but allowed himself to wear a carefree smile.

Saul’s reaction shouldn’t have surprised him.

The man simply reached into the middle of the table, swiftly lifted the half full whiskey bottle and filled his glass to the very rim before drowning as much of it as he could in one go. “Well, that escalated quickly” Saul announced when he placed his glass back down onto the table, leaning back on his seat. “I can’t say I’m surprised though, Bill” He admitted, knowing that any man had to be blind if he failed to see just how serious Laura and Bill’s relationship was. Even with one eye he could see that!

"Really?" Lee asked, raising an eyebrow as he sat back on his seat, as though unsure of the idea of his father marrying another woman. Yes, his father’s marriage to his mother had been far from happy at the best of times; but was he rushing into things with the President? Their relationship had happened so quickly. "Yes, really!" It was Pandora who answered, straining her voice as she looked across the table at the man. "I’m going to be your sister, Lee!" She reminded him, her smile was filled with happiness and hope. That alone was enough to change Lee’s opinion.

Maybe some happiness was what they all needed. Lee had never felt as though he belonged to a family, more so to two parents who never saw each other and when they did, it was usually followed with the shattering of glasses and his mother drowning her sorrow in whiskey and bourbon.

Everyone deserved a second chance at happiness.

He couldn’t help but think of what Kara would say. No doubt she would throw her arm around Bill’s shoulder and make a sarcastic comment about the old man finally finding a woman for himself. She would have known how to handle the situation.

Yet Kara wasn’t there.

"That’s great, Dad" Lee confessed, allowing his own lips to pull up in a smile as he nodded his head. "I think it’s about time we had something to celebrate" Dee agreed, looking from her husband to her father in law. She couldn’t help but think that Laura, Bill and Pandora looked right together. As if it was always meant to be that way.

Destiny was a strange thing.

Lifting his wine glass, Lee clasped his hand around the stem as he lifted it up to offer a toast “To Bill and Laura” He declared, nodding his wineglass towards the pair before the other two adults, accompanied by a rather enthusiastic Pandora repeated his words. Laura turned her head to smile at the man beside her, giving his hand a squeeze as she relaxed in the knowledge that the other three approved of their engagement. In both Laura and Bill’s mind, it was only their opinion that truly mattered to them.

The scrapping of silver cutlery against the ceramic plates filled the room. It was only whenever she was half way through her meal that Dee raised her head, speaking freely by herself for the first time. “When do you plan on getting married?” She asked curiously, feeling more comfortable around the older couple with each passing minute. Laura froze for a moment, unsure of the answer herself as she looked at Bill, who looked equally as uncertain as herself. “We actually have no idea” Laura revealed as a sense of realisation came over her. The engagement had happened so suddenly and combined with the other crisis they had been forced to deal with in the same window of time, Laura hadn’t even though of the wedding.

"I think something small though. Private. In fact, I think we just had you all there then I would be happy" Laura confessed truthfully. After all, the nearest thing she had to family after the cylon attacks was Billy, who had suffered a similar fate to Kara. The good always did die young. Now, she was happy as long as Pandora was there. No doubt Bill would want Lee and Saul there as well. "So say we all" Bill declared in agreement, being the private man that he was, the last thing he wanted was a large scale wedding where he would be forced to socially interact with the Quorum and the press. Laura was always much better at that sort of thing than he was.

"Why don’t you get married now?" Pandora suggested, not seeing any reason why they couldn’t as she swung her legs from side to side as she finished off the last of her food. "We’re all here after all" Saul added, shrugging his aging shoulders as the rest of his muttered words were drowned out as he lifted his whiskey glass and took another long sip of the burning liquid. "I think it’s an excellent idea" Dee agreed as she placed her cutlery down onto the plate in front of her.

"I mean…we have nothing arranged, I have no dress…" Laura began to protest, however it was Pandora who cut her off. "You can wear your red dress!" Pandora declared as she sat up in her chair, sitting on her knees as she looked with widened eyes at the woman beside her, the excitement rolling off her in waves. Laura could sense that Dee and Pandora could be a deadly team when scheming together.

If she wasn’t seeing it with her own eyes, then Laura wouldn’t have believed what was happening. Lee had rushed out of the quarters in search of the high priest before she left for the evening, while Saul left his seat to get Bill’s suit before retrieving another bottle of whiskey and placing it under his arm.

"Are you sure we’re not rushing into this?" Laura breathed as she leaned over to move closer to the man who was about to become her husband. "There’s no time like the present, Laura. You and I both know that" Bill reminded her, taking a hold of her hand as he caught sight of Saul heading for the door. Laura sighed to herself; yes, they knew that all too well. They had to live for today. Yesterday was a distant memory and tomorrow may never come. "Well then, Admiral Adama, I believe you have a church to get too" Laura teased, hoping to lighten the mood as a teasing smirk played on her lips. "I believe so, President Roslin" Bill joked, attempting to keep a straight and serious face before he leaned in to place a kiss against her lips.

"Come on!" Pandora protested as she tugged on her mother’s blouse. Always the impatient child, Pandora folded her arms in a manner that reminded Bill of Laura whenever she would grow impatient with the Quorum or the press. "Right, I’m coming" Laura called over her shoulder as she pulled away from the man and turned to look at the child behind her. Taking her mother’s hand, Pandora led the way from the table towards the bunk where Dee was waiting on them.

Chuckling to himself, Bill shook his head as he stood from his chair and headed towards the hatch door where Saul stood waiting, content to sip away at his precious whiskey. “You know, it’s the groom who’s meant to be drinking the whiskey” Bill reminded his long time friend as he left the confinements of his own quarters to go to Saul’s.

"You look lovely, Laura" Dee complimented the woman before her, admiring the way the crimson red material sat against her porcelain skin. Running her hands down the side of the dress, Laura looked at herself through the mirror. Bill always did like that dress. Her hair had been left to sit around her shoulder like gentle waves while she had kept her makeup to a minimum. Her outfit was by no means a wedding dress, but she was not your conventional bride.

Laura turned around in time to see Pandora appear from around the corner. “We match!” The child announced happily, walking towards the older woman with a skip in her step. Pandora had deliberately selected the red dress that she had worn to Laura’s inauguration ceremony after the exodus from New Caprica. “That we do” Laura said, smiling down at the girl as she bent down beside her.

Dee watched on with a gentle smile. It was clear that Laura was born to be a mother, no doubt her maternal instincts had developed after years of teaching. If she didn’t know any better, then she would have swore with her hand on her heart that Pandora was Laura’s daughter by blood. Yet blood was thicker than water.

A family brought together by choice was stronger than one forced together.

Glancing up at the clock, Dee cleared her throat to gain the pair’s attention. “We best be going” She declared, knowing that if they waited any longer, they would no doubt run into the viper pilots when they returned from their training. That was the last thing they needed. Dee was fully aware that Laura and Bill wanted to keep their marriage private and out of the press’s knowledge for as long as possible.

Standing up to her full height, Laura put her hand out for Pandora as she walked towards the door of the Admiral’s private quarters. She was thankful for the fact that the hallways were deserted, with most of the Galactica personnel either in the CIC, the hanger deck or on viper training. She wasn’t sure how she would explain her appearance other wise, even if her presence on Galactica was rarely commented on anymore.

"Kara would have liked this" Pandora commented as they headed down the hallways, attempting to stay out of sight from any passersby as they headed down to the church. "Yes, she would have" Laura replied, knowing that the pilot would have do doubt demanded to be Bill’s ‘Best Woman’.

Laura pulled her eyes away from Pandora as she spotted Lee standing outside the door of the church. “I’ve been tasked with the duty of walking the bride down the aisle”He announced as the trio arrived in front of him. His Cheshire Cat smirk assured Laura that he had changed his mood towards the marriage, no longer having a shadow of doubt towards the idea. “I’ll take Pandora in” Dee suggested, reaching to take the girl’s hand. Pandora dropped Laura’s hand before taking Dee’s, allowing Lee’s wife to guide her into the church.

"Ready, Madame President?" Lee asked, holding his arm out for the woman to take, his smile beaming at her. Laura - and by extension Pandora - was exactly what his father needed. He could see that now. "As ready as I’m ever going to be" Laura assured him, moving to slip her hand through his arm before he guided the way towards the door, holding it open so she could enter first.

While she had no flowers, she had hope.

While she didn’t have a virgin white gown, she had a crimson dress with meaning behind it.

While she had no wedding march to guide her down the aisle, she had the gentle giggles of Pandora to accompany her walk.

Arriving at the altar in the center of the room, Laura could feel herself turning into a giddy teenager. All of this had happened so fast. Yet in the time they lived in, every second counted. “You look lovely” Bill declared as Laura arrived at his side, his eyes moving in an elevator like motion as he looked the woman up and down. “You don’t wash up too bad yourself” She joked, admiring the way his official uniform - the one had worn while showing her the water refiner not long after she had first been instated - looked on him. Gods, when had she ever gotten so luck?

"May we begin?" The Priest interrupted, leaning forward slightly to look at the President and Admiral. As much as she would love to go straight to the bar and collect her winnings from her bet, she was positive that the Admiral and President wanted to keep their marriage a secret for as long as possible. Laura nodded her head in confirmation and watched as the priest cleared her throat.

"Who gives this woman to be married to this man?" The priest asked, standing between the couple and the altar as she allowed her gaze to fall on Lee. "That would be me" The C.A.G spoke, feeling Laura tighten her grip on his arm slightly. If anyone had of told his father two years ago that he would be marrying the President, Lee was sure that the man would have had them locked up in the brig and sent to Cottle to have their head checked.

Time was a funny thing. It could change a person in more ways than one.

Leaning over to kiss Laura’s cheek, Lee then shook his father’s hand before taking his place beside Dee who stood at Laura’s side with an enthusiastic Pandora who wore her usual cheeky grin as she watched the couple in front of the Priest.

Laura used her free hand to slip a strand of hair behind her ear, cautious of the fact that time was not on their side. Last thing they needed was worshipers to arrive in the church during the ceremony.

"Madame President" The Priest spoke, deciding it may be safer to address the woman by her rightful title "If you could repeat after me. I, Laura Roslin, take you William Adama.."As the younger woman spoke, Laura turned herself so that she was facing Bill, taking ahold of his free hand as well. Repeating the priest’s words, she could feel a chance in the air. As if everything was right in the world. "…to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish; from this day forward until death do us part."As she repeated the words, Laura couldn’t help but linger on the last phrase. What if her death came sooner than either of them wanted? Pushing the thought to the darkest corner of her mind, Laura smiled at the man before her, squeezing his hand as she placed all her trust in him.

He would see her through the storm. She was sure of that much.

"Admiral Adama" The Priest began, turning to face the man, allowing a smile to decorate her features. "If you could repeat after me. I, William Adama, take you Laura Roslin…" He repeated the woman’s words, making a mental note to thank Pandora later for bringing up the spontaneous idea of getting married then. This was exactly what they both wanted. No fuss. No press. Just the two of them and four other most important people in their life - their family. They had to live in the moment, because tomorrow may never come. "…to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish; from this day forward until death do us part."Bill himself spoke the last phrase with a heavy heart, the idea of Laura’s cancer plagued his mind for a moment. Cottle would find a solution to it, he had too.

Laura seemed to sense his sudden change in mood as she squeezed his hand in bid to offer him some silent comfort. “Do we have any rings?” The Priest asked, causing Laura’s face to drop in realisation while Bill sighed to himself. They were bound to forget something. “I do” Saul spoke, digging inside the pocket of his jacket before producing a small black velvet box. Laura blinked in shock, unsure if it was truthfully Saul before her. Though Bill was his greatest friend, and no doubt Saul had wanted to repay him in some way for his decades of kindness.

Handing the velvet box over to his friend, Saul patted the Admiral’s shoulder. It seemed Saul really could surprise them all. Flipping open the box, Bill watched as the two narrow gold bands caught the dim candle light. Bill nodded his thanks before taking a hold of Laura’s left hand, using his other hand to take the smaller of the two rings out of its velvet cushion.

"Laura, I give you this ring, as a symbol of our marriage, for today and tomorrow, and for all the days to come" Bill spoke confidently, glowing with pride as he slipped the cold band onto the woman’s slender finger, admiring the way it caught the light against the soft skin of her finger.

Laura could feel the crystal tears pooling around the rim of her eyes as she looked down at the gold band. Before the attacks on the colonies. She had been a single woman without a family, who’s sisters and father had been stolen away from her in a tragic, that had been diagnosed with an apparently terminal cancer that forced her to re-evaluate her life - and more so her relationship with a certain President of the Colonies. Fast forward in a two years, she was the President with a family, a daughter and now a husband, and while her cancer had returned, she was confident she could fight it.

If only her mother could have been there.

The woman had come to accept the fact that Laura wouldn’t be making her a grandmother and wouldn’t be giving her a strapping young son in law - not like her younger sister had done. Her youngest sister hadn’t even been given the chance to do that.

Taking Bill’s ring, she handed the box over to Lee before taking a hold of Bill’s left hand. Taking a deep breath, Laura blinked away the unshed tears as she thought of something meaningful to say. Her mind rushed back to the samples of vows she had helped her sister write on the eve of the woman’s wedding. “With this ring, I give you my heart. From this day forward, you shall not walk alone. May my heart be your shelter, may my arms be your home” Laura declared, looking down at the man’s hand as she placed the gold band onto his finger. A perfect fit. Turning her gaze back to the man before her, she gave him her undivided attention as the priest spoke for the final time.

"It gives me the greatest honor to announce you as husband and wife. You may kiss your bride, Admiral" She could hardly hide her excitement, it seemed the gossipers of Galactica had been right about their analysis of the Adama-Roslin partnership. Though this was one secret she would struggle to keep, she knew it was for the best. If not for the Admiral and President, then for the child, who was already under enough scrutiny as it was.

Bill stepped forward to close the gap between them, his arm finding its way around Laura’s waist, pulling her close as he brought his lips down against hers. Yes, their wedding was by no means conventional, perhaps their marriage wasn’t either. Yet it was what they wanted.

All they needed was hope, faith and each other.

Everything else would work itself out.

Though Bill couldn’t deny that he could feel a change coming, as though something was brewing just about to begin.


	16. Crossroads Part 1

Her pulse quickened as she slowly walked down the crimson carpet of the top balcony, each step feeling like a mile.

It was then that she heard it.

Laughter.

Children's laughter.

Her steps quickened in a desperate bid to find the source of the noise. It sounded like...it couldn't be, surely? As she turned the corner, she spotted the pair.

Hera. Pandora.

Her heart skipped a beat then. "Pandora!" She cried, watching as the girl disappeared hand in hand with Hera down the hallway. A sense of dread and fear filled her veins.

It was then that she felt the presence of someone else in the room. Glancing up from her spot on the balcony, she noticed Athena standing in a similar position to herself, fearfully watching her daughter as she called out her name in a desperate bid to grasp her attention.

When her eyes met the cylon's, Laura knew something wasn't right.

Her first instinct was to get to Pandora. No matter what, she had to get Pandora.

Setting off down the staircase in time with Athena, Laura almost tripped off the last step as she quickened her pace, desperate to get to the children in front of her. "Pandora!" She cried once more, though the children acted as though the sound simply floated around them, both ignorant to the pleas of their mother.

Laura stopped in her tracks suddenly when two familiar figures appeared in front of the children.

The Six and Baltar.

A shiver ran down her spine. Call it mother's instinct, but Laura knew something was wrong.

"Pandora!" One last desperate cry escaped Laura's lips as she darted towards the two small children, Athena quick on her heels as they both attempted to rescue their children from the claws of the beasts.

As though they were unaware of the President and Pilot, the Six bent down to pick up Hera, placing the half cylon, half human hybrid on her hip while Baltar moved to clasp Pandora's small hand in his own.

Before either of the mothers could react, the couple and children disappeared through the golden double doors and into the near blinding light.

Laura's heart seemed to stop, as though her life had no meaning...then everything went pitched black.

It was just a dream. A nightmare that was fabricated from her greatest fear; losing Pandora.

The sweat was clinging to her skin. The fear was rushing through her veins. Her sharp intake of breath was enough to wake the man beside her.

"Laura?" Bill mumbled in his sleep, his grip of the woman tightening as he held her close. "Go back to sleep, Bill, it's nothing" She assured him, keeping her back pressed against his chest while her eyes squinted in the dim light.

Pandora was safely asleep in her cot, her chest rising and falling in a rhythmic pattern. Pandora was safe; it was just a horrible nightmare, nothing more. Laura allowed sleep to claim her as its willing victim once more.

Pandora stumbled into the living area of the Admiral's quarters, hearing three voices in the air. Laura, Bill and Lee. Rubbing the sleep from her eyes, the child helped herself onto the chair nearest her mother.

It took all of Laura's self control to stop her from reaching out and taking Pandora in her arms, covering her with affectionate kisses while promising to always keep her safe. She couldn't though. Doing so would be an acceptance of her apparent vision. Pandora was not going to fall into the hands of cylons and certainly not into the hands of Gaius frakking Baltar. It was not a vision. It was a nightmare. It had to be.

"Good morning, Pandy" Lee spoke, looking across the table at his side with an unguarded smile. Pandora was a second chance for them all. A second chance for Bill to be a father. A second chance for him to be a proper, protective brother. A second chance for Laura to have a family.

"I have a gift for you" He revealed, lifting up the brown paper package that was tied up with white string. "You had no need to get her anything" Bill reminded his son, but sensed that the young man had an alternative motive for his affectionate act.

With the help of Laura, Pandora managed to rip away the paper, reaching inside the small white box to retrieve her gift. "Really?" Pandora asked, a look of shock masked her face, her eyes widening as she looked down at the viper pilot suit in her hands, an exact replica of the one worn by Kara, Lee and the other pilots. "Every Adama needs their own pilot suit" Lee explained, watching with amusement as Pandora and Laura examined the costume with delicate hands and trained eyes.

"Can the CAG please report to the hanger deck?" The voice over the intercom announced, bringing the man's visit to a premature end. Lee waited until his father nodded his head in acceptance before he ruffle his sister's hair. "I'll see you on the wings, Kid" Lee said before making his exit from the quarters.

Pandora was content to gaze in disbelief at her gift. She was a true viper pilot now. "We'll have to get you on a viper soon" Bill confessed, lifting his mug of steaming hot coffee, taking a long sip.

Laura pressed her lips together as she raised her eyebrow. Pandora's eyes widened with excitement, a giggle escaping her lips. Was Bill being serious?

"Really, papa?" Pandora asked, her small fingers clutched onto the material of her viper suit - her most cherished possession. "When you're sixteen" Bill concluded, earning a loud sigh from the child who looked away from her father in annoyance.

Bill watched as a mournful expression fell onto his wife's face. Would Laura see Pandora's sixteenth birthday or even her fifth? Emptying his mid of his darkening thoughts, he reached out to take a hold of the woman's smaller hand across the table. "Are you okay? You're a little jumpy today" He observed, remembering how her supposed nightmare had woken both of them in the small hours of the morning. "I'm fine, it's nothing" She lied, brushing his concern away, even if she could still see the haunting images of the opera house replaying over and over again in her head - each time more vividly than the last

It was just a dream. It was not a vision. Pandora would not fall into the hands of the cylons.

As Pandora disappeared through the quarters in search of her backpack for daycare. Laura tried to calm her nerves as she focused on the days events.

It was beginning today. Baltar's trial. It would no doubt open another can of worms.

She was a key witness. Her husband was a judge. Her stepson was assisting the defence attorney. Her daughter was a possible victim. It was all one great mess. Throwing Baltar out of an airlock seemed a more simple, painless and appealing idea.

"Are you starting the Chamalla today?" Bill asked, standing from his seat, rounding the table to take the seat beside his wife, his arm wrapped around her hunched shoulders as Laura wrapped her arms around herself. Laura nodded her head, reflecting on her current situation. She was the President of the Twelve Colonies; in charge with the remaining survivors of the genocide of Caprica. She was the adoptive mother of a four year old girl with a mysterious past. She was the newly married wife of the Admiral of the Colonial Fleet. Finally, she was the dying prophet who was destined to guide the people to Earth.

A President. A Prophet. A Parent. A Wife.

Now her cancer was back, bringing her short lived happiness to a sudden end.

"Tori's collecting the first dosage from Cottle today. I'm going to try and add it to my tea, see if I can mask the taste a little" Laura explained, praying to the Lords of Kobol that their plan would work. She had no other choice than to fight her cancer. Both she and Bill were making a habit of defeating the odds; couldn't they do it again?

"My diloxan treatment will start a day or two after" She announced, her voice filled with hesitation at the idea. Laura had been forced to endure watching her mother suffer under the medication, which ultimately led her to fighting with Cottle over her refusal to use the drug last time.

Though last time, she didn't have a husband and a daughter depending on her.

Bill's finger traced over the cold metal of his wife's wedding band. "You're not going to go through this alone, Laura" He reminded her, positive that this time he would be at every doctor's appointment and would stay with her during each diloxan treatment. No doubt Pandora would bring them both some light during the coming days of darkness.

"I know" Laura replied, though she knew all to well how painful of an experience it was to watch a loved one slipping away from this life while trying to keep a strong and supportive facade, willing them to fight for their life.

Pandora stopped in her tracks when she entered the living room, her backpack and elephant clutched in her hands. "Mama, are you okay?" She asked curiously, stepping towards the woman with a worried expression. Her mother - the strong, infamous President - looked fearful, something that terrified Pandora.

Laura's eyes glanced between her husband and daughter. Pandora needed to be told. One way or another. How do you tell an innocent and pure hearted child that their mother might die? Pandora had already lost Kara; she didn't need to lose Laura too. The trial would be traumatic for them all, Laura hoped they could postpone their walk with Pandora until afterwards, then she and Bill would sit their daughter down and explain everything in the best way possible - in a way that an overprotected four year old could understand. For now, they needed to keep a straight face and act as though everything was perfectly fine.

"Of course I'm okay. Come on, we need to take you to daycare" Laura reminded her, throwing on her blazer while Bill adjusted the military medals on his uniform, mentally preparing himself for the role of 'judge' in Baltar's trial. The Lords of Kobol continued to try them all - especially Laura and himself. How much more sadness, difficulty and turmoil could they survive? He didn't know the answer.

"I'll see you in court" Bill said, dropping a kiss on Laura's cheek before bending down in front of Pandora, who stood looking up with widened eyes, her innocent smile lighting up the room.

"What do you hear?" He asked, though the familiar words came with a heavy heart. "Nothing but the rain, papa" The young girl gave the expected reply, having heard the expression exchanged between Bill and Kara before. "Then grab your gun and bring in the cat" Bill concluded, his hand coming to rest on the girl's loose shoulder before he affectionately kissed her cheek.

Laura remained silent throughout the exchange, content to watch the father and daughter duo interact. Their heartwarming exchange had brought a gentle smile to her lips. It was moments like this that she cherished and held close to her heart. It was moments like this that made her feel that Pandora truly was their daughter, not a child that had stumbled into their lives by accident.

"Aye, aye, sir!" Pandora joked, her teasing laughter lightened the heavy atmosphere in the room, pushing away the darkness for a short moment. Laura reached out and took the girl's hand, leading her towards the door. "I'll see you in a minute, Bill" She called over her shoulder as they left their private quarters and started their journey towards the daycare.

She couldn't hide her discomfort at the idea that her husband was one of the five captains charged with deciding the faith of Gaius Baltar. She trusted Bill to make the right decision. The only decision.

Laura was still fuming.

Baltar's trial was the last thing she needed. Yet, she had to put on a perfect poker face. The press and the fleet had no idea of her cancer and for now she would like to keep both that and their marriage as private as possible.

It didn't help that Baltar's defense had tried to turn the table on her in their opening statement. Sometimes, Laura regretted allowing Baltar to win the election, but what Bill said still stood true. Without New Caprica; they wouldn't have Pandora and they most likely wouldn't have their marriage either.

Sipping her tea from its steaming metal flask, she allowed the bitter taste of Chamalla to fill her mouth. While the tea masked the smell, the bitter after taste remained - just like last time.

It didn't help that the Camalla was making the memories of her nightmare - she refused to call it a vision - more and more vivid.

"I think we should ask the Six, she may be willing to help" Laura announced to the small group that was gathered around the island at the heart of the CIC. "Baltar's girlfriend - why would she do that?" Saul challenged her, speaking her predecessor's name with anger and annoyance "She does not want Hera to go back to the cylons" Laura explained, knowing that her dream - calling it a vision would be acceptance of the idea that Pandora would fall into the hands of the cylons - was proof of her dedication to protect Hera, she could understand that, but what was her connection with Pandora?

"Do you really think she'll stick her neck out for some human cylon hybrid?" Saul asked, showing his lack of confidence in the blonde cylon currently being held on board Galactic. "I have a feeling she would lay her life down for it" Laura admitted truthfully, recognising the fact that both she and the Six had tried to protect the hybrid child - even if it had been for different reasons.

"A feeling?" Bill questioned, thinking that the chamalla was already effecting his wife's start of mind if she was considering collaborating with a cylon for information.

If it wasn't for the fact that she didn't want him to worry anymore than he already was, then perhaps Laura would have told him about her dream - her apparent vision of the opera house - but not today. If he sensed at all that their daughter was in danger, he would become even more hostile to the cylons, place Pandora on around the clock protection and would no doubt kill Baltar himself; not that she wouldn't mind the last scenario.

"It's more than a feeling alright" Laura stated, her voice pleading with him to trust her, just like she had done with him on countless occasions. "Just do it!' She snapped, her chamalla heightening her senses and adding to her stress as her eyes darted between her husband and his life long friend.

"It doesn't hurt to ask" Laura left them with her parting words before she walked away, shaking her head as she walked up the steps towards the privacy of the damage control room of the CIC. Bill waited, instructing his XO to fulfill the President's wishes and speak to the cylon prisoner, before he followed his wife towards the back of the CIC.

"Hey" Bill said, announcing his arrival as he walked into the control room. Laura nodded her head and humed in acknowledgment while lowering herself down onto the leather armchair. Stopping in front of the woman, he took a hold of his wife's small hands in his own bigger ones. "We'll ask the six, before for now, you need to relax" He tried to comfort her, giving her hand a gentle squeeze as he tried to ease her fears and worries.

"It all seems real now" She whispered, her eyes trained on the spot of ground between their feet; anything to distract her from her pain. It wasn't a physical pain, more a mental one. "You have to stay strong, Laura. You're going to fight this" He said, hoping to motivate her. She couldn't lose her faith in herself his early in the game.

"How about we get Pandora and call it an early night?" Bill suggested, knowing that being tucked away with Pandora in the privacy of their quarters, away from the press, the chaos of the trial and their respective duties as Admiral and President, was the only thing that would lift Laura's spirits.

"That sounds nice" She admitted, her eyes remaining heavy, her skin as pale as the first drops of winter's snow as she took a hold of her husband's arm, allowing him to guide her away from the hustle and bustle of the CIC and towards the privacy of their quarters. It seemed like heaven there, which was exactly what she needed.

After a night spent wrapped up in the comfort of their private quarters, simply enjoying each other's presence, Laura forgot all about her worries - her role as President, her role as an apparent Prophet, her dream which could possibly be another vision and her cancer.

"How are you feeling?" Bill asked as he placed their breakfast down onto the table, taking his usual seat across from the woman. "I'm fine - I just... I just want this all to be done with" She confessed, knowing it couldn't be easy for Bill to sit in the judge's seat, his wife on the witness stand and his son assisting the betrayer of the human race. "I know the feeling" Bill added, wanting nothing more than to be relieved of his role as judge but he had a duty to fulfill.

"I was looking to discuss something with you" Laura said, her eyes casting over to where Pandora sat onto he couch, playing with her doll's hair while finishing her drink. "You want to take Pandora into court, don't you?" Bill asked, knowing he could read his wife like an open book. Though he himself had also been thinking of bringing the girl along with them.

"I want her to be able to say that she was there when they found Gaius Baltar as being guilty for his crimes against our people" Laura admitted, she had a feeling that Pandora would turn out to be as stubborn and justice seeking as both Bill and herself. "It might help her unlock some of those missing memories" Bill thought aloud, knowing that they would eventually have to piece together Pandora's past; while they were confident that Pandora had no family, it was unusual for a child to forget almost everything about their life, which increased the likelihood that Pandora had suffered some form of trauma during New Caprica.

Laura nodded her head, complimenting the situation in her head. It would involve Pandora being in front of the press, without Bill and without her there to protect the girl. However, Tori would be there and Pandora would be kept in the front row, away from the preying eyes of the press and where both Bill and herself could keep an eye on her from their respective locations.

"Baltar's lawyer will hardly try to pull me apart on the stand" Laura added to her argument before she nodded her head. "It's agreed, we'll take Pandora with us" She decided, finishing off her breakfast before she stood from the table to walk over to her daughter. "Come on, Pandora" Laura led the girl over to the chest of drawers in search of something appropriate for them both to wear.

As they arrived in the make shift courtroom, Laura escorted Pandora over to her usual seat in the front row. "Now, do you remember what I said?" Laura asked, sitting herself down in Tori's seat for a moment. "Don't speak to press and if anyone says anything bad about you or Papa, they don't mean it" Pandora repeated her mother's earlier words. Resting her backpack on her lap, she looked up at the seats where her mother and father would sit. "Good" Laura said, offering a comforting smile to her daughter before looking up at the witness box as Baltar and his attorney arrived in the room, Tori appearing a moment later.

Squeezing her daughter's shoulder, Laura stood up from the seat and readjusted her blazer. The prosecution had already questioned her, now the sly defense council had earned their turn to cross-examine her. As Laura sat herself down in the witness box, she pushed a strand of hair behind her ear. Readjusting the cuff of her ivory blouse, she settled herself in her seat.

As Lee stood from his seat, heading towards the witness stand, she titled her head towards her husband. Was this really happening? Was Lee about to stab them both in the back? Metaphorically and literally.

"Madame President, aren't you alive today because of Gaius Baltar?" Lee began, starting his argument to free the cylon collaborator. Ever word that left her stepson's lips felt like a knife being twisted in Laura's heart. What game was he playing? "I'm alive today because the insurgents managed to stop the execution" She reminded him, reflecting on her time trapped in the back of a truck with Tom Zarek, the way her life had once again flashed before her eyes when the cylon centurions appeared before them. For a split second she had believed it was game over for her.

"They saved you from a cylon firing squad but wasn't it Baltar who saved your life when you were dying from cancer?" Lee questioned, holding his arm out to signal to his 'client'. Laura felt her stomach begin to turn, as though she knew exactly what path Lee was choosing to follow. He didn't know about her cancer. Only Bill and Cottle knew; not even Tigh knew.

"Relevance?" The prosecution demanded, her eyes trailing up to the judge's stand, specifically Admiral Adama. Everyone knew of the closeness between the Admiral and the President, you had to be blind not to see it and deaf not to have heard the rumors. Adama and Roslin were the worst kept secret in the fleet.

"You...Your Honors..." Lee stumbled over his words, his confidence taking a knock at the woman's questioning. "Hostile witness, Your Honor. If the court would grant us just a little attitude" Baltar's attorney spoke, glaring at Lee with a sideward glance and narrow eyes. He could blow this all with one badly timed move. "We'll allow it" The senior judge, a blonde haired Captain, announced with a slow, steady nod of her head.

"Did Gaius Baltar save your life when you were dying from cancer?" Lee reworded his question, clutching his pen between his hands as he pushed himself forward. If they broke Laura, then Baltar would walk.

With her hands on the end of the table, Laura cleared her throat before speaking clearly. "Doctor Baltar scientific knowledge did save my life indeed" She gave the politcally correct answer, aware of the fact that the cross examination was turning into a chess game. Each move needed to be well thought out and work for her advantage. "Can you be more specific? How did he save your life on that occasion?" Lee asked, his confidence once again returning to him as he watched a sudden look of discomfort mask Laura's face before her Presidential Persona returned.

"He injected me with the blood of a half human, half cylon baby" She revealed, her dream once again played out before her. Hera. It made sense as to why the cylons would be interested in her, but casting her eyes over to the child in the front row, she still couldn't piece together why the Six and Baltar would want Pandora. Perhaps that's why she couldn't look the man in the face.

As whispers and soft mutters began to fill the room, Lee took one step forward before speaking again. "And your cancer vanished?" He asked for clarification, earning a nod from his stepmother. "Completely" She confirmed, praying that it would be the end of that sensitive topic.

"During your illness what sort of medication were you on?" Lee inquired, his voice had a stronger tone to it, and Laura was surprised at just how much he could pass off for being a real attorney. Sensing that the conversation was about to take a sudden turn, Laura picked up her glasses and perched them on the bridge of her nose. "You know, I was taking a lot of medications at the time and I don't remember all their names" She replied, hoping the half truth of an answer would satisfy the man as she lightly shrugged her shoulder.

Out of the corner of her eye, she could see the anger beginning to slip through the professional mask Bill had put on as Lee let out a huff of disbelief, shaking his head.

"Did you take something called Chamalla extract?" Lee asked, confirming Laura's earlier fears as he raised his head. Laura froze, staring at her stepson with a raised eyebrow, sitting a little straight in her seat.

Let out a small hum, the woman felt the side of her lip pull up in an uncomfortable smile before dropping just as quickly. "Yes" She confirmed, her eyes once again slipping over to the front row where Tori looked torn as to wither or not to escort Pandora out of the room, though the child - as though sensing her mother's discomfort - was sitting on the edge of her sit, her arms wrapped around herself, listening intensively to the conversation between Lee and mother.

"Isn't it true that one of the side affects of taking Chamalla...is the experience of hallucinations?" Lee's voice was louder now as he turned himself to face the audience and press, as though teasing them with information before he turned to face the witness once more.

"Yes, that is one of the possible side affects" Laura confirmed, forcing herself to keep a civil voice as she sat up straight, refusing to believe that Lee could do it to her. He wouldn't tell everyone. "Isn't it also true that the visions that you once described as messages from the gods were actually the result of a pharmacological reaction from taking Chamalla?" Lee once again turned himself to the waiting press, moving his hands in front of him with every word.

Pandora looked between her mother, father and Lee, her eyes beginning to fill with tears as she listened to the harsh tone in Lee's voice. "The Chamalla did enable me to see certain things that were foretold by the scriptures, things that will help this fleet find its way to Earth, you of all people should know that, Major" Laura replied, like a teacher telling of a student as she attempted to turn the conversation on its head.

"Your Honors!" The prosecution exclaimed, throwing her hands in the air. "Mr. Adama, where are you going with this?" The blonde woman asked, even her patiences were beginning to run thin.

"Just one more question" Lee stated, taking a step towards the judges before turning on his heel to walk up to the witness box.

Looking into the man's eyes, Laura could see how torn he was, but that didn't make the pain she was feeling any less. Blinking away the tears that were forming in the corner of her eyes, she let out a low whisper. "Please don't do this" She begged, her face turning to one of desperation as she pleaded with her stepson. He had no idea the damage he was about to inflict. Bill remained silent as he glanced between his wife and son; Lee couldn't hurt Laura or Pandora, no matter how much of a vendetta Lee might have against him.

Lee took a deep breath, his voice hoarse as he began to speak. "Madame President, are you taking Chamalla at this time?" He questioned, knowing he would regret his words, but he couldn't stop what he had already started.

It took all of Laura's self control not to lash out at the man. Her eyes became glazed with tears as she sat in silence for a moment "Captain Apollo, do you remember that?" She refused to answer his earlier questions, recalling the time when they were on better terms. Oh, how times had changed "I always thought it had such a nice ring to it" She deflected the conversation, her eyes trained on her stepson. "I am so, so sorry for you now" She concluded, unable to believe that the heartless man in front of her was the same person who had gifted Pandora the viper suit the day before.

"Think of Pandy" Laura pleaded, clasping her hands under the table, her eyes widening as her voice dropped.

At the mention of the girl, Lee was unable to look his stepmother in the eyes, turning his head away from her, trying to forget about his personal connections to her. The pair stood in silence for a moment before he spoke. "Chamalla, Madame President" He repeated "Perhaps dissolved in your tea to mask the bitterness" His voice felt like a ton of bricks pressing down against her chest.

"Don't answer that" Bill demanded, unable to sit silently at the sidelines as he was forced to watch his son tear his wife apart on the witness stand before his very eyes. "I'm putting a stop to this right now" He assured his wife, no longer caring about official procedure. This was his wife. His duty to protect her was greater than his duty as an officer.

"Your Honors, if she is on drugs it goes to her credibility as a witness" Lee argued, walking purposefully towards the judges with quick strides, glaring at his father with furious eyes, his anger at his father now boiling up inside of him. "Witness is dismissed" Bill announced, folding his hand on the table in front of him, his eyes fixed on his wife as he forced himself to remain calm. Laura wouldn't appreciate him making a scene.

"Your Honors, I have to strongly object! He's obviously trying to cover something up here" Baltar's attorney stated, standing from his seat as he gestured between the President and Admiral. "One more word for you and you'll both be hold in contempt" Bill argued, deciding that preventing Lee from further questioning Laura was the only way he could protect her.

"Admiral!" The blonde woman on his right protested, turning her head to look at the man. "I would like to hear the witness answer the question" The judge next to her announced, speaking for the first time during the trial. "As would I" The woman said, preventing Bill from continuing his own argument.

"Madame President, are you taking Chamalla again?" She asked, looking at the President as Bill sat himself back on his chair, his eyes fixed on the child directly in front of him. Pandora was clutching her elephant close to her chest, her eyes rimmed with tears as she touched the strands of her hair that were sealed in her ponytail; a tell tale sign that she was becoming distressed.

Laura twisted her wedding ring around her finger, hoping to gather some courage for what was to come. This was not how it was meant to happen. A silence fell across the courtroom as those present waited anxiously to hear the President's response. Tori moved to take Pandora's hand but the girl flinched away from the woman, focusing only on her mother.

Laura nodded her head, taking a deep breath before she spoke, unable to look at anyone except the blonde woman. "Yes, I am" She confessed, her revelation filled the courtroom with whispers, mutters and conversation.

Lee tried to stand his ground, continuing to glare at his father, only breaking his eye contact as he walked away "No further question" He announced, making his way back to his seat.

"Mr Adama, aren't you going to ask me why?" Laura questioned, her words caused the young man to stop mid-step. Everyone would put two and two together eventually and realise why she was taking chamalla; they may as well know sooner rather than later.

"I'm sorry" Lee asked, confusion laced his voice, this was the one thing he hadn't thought of. Bill was surprised at how calm his wife was, but he put her professional facade down to the presence of the press and Pandora. "Why am I taking Chamalla again?" Laura repeated, moving her hands out in a gesturing motion as she forced a fake smile which only furthered Lee's confusion. He had to finish what he had started.

"That's not strictly relevant" Lee thought aloud, he shrugged his shoulders as his furrowed brow moved inwards. "Well, perhaps it's not relevant to you but it is to me" Her voice was beginning to break slightly, dropping in tone and pitch as she explained herself to her stepson.

Lee felt as though he was being hit by a ton of bricks. Laura wasn't taking Chamalla for the fun of it, was she? "Go ahead, ask me why" Laura dared him, in that moment she refused to think of the man as Bill's son, for he had just committed treason against their entire family, without even knowing it. "Finish what you started" She encourage him, wanting him to feel just a little of the pain that she was going through.

"Why are you taking Chamalla again, Madame President?" He asked, fearful of the answer he would receive. Lee the lawyer was long gone, replaced by the former C.A.G who stood with a mournful look framing his face.

Taking her glasses from the bridge of her nose, the woman dropped them down against the armrest of the witness stand, folding her hands out in front of her, trying to stop the shaking motion that had overcome them.

"I am taking Chamalla again because my cancer has returned" Laura announced, dropping a bombshell on the audience of the courtroom. The collective gasps echoed around the room, until one by one each person recovered and the noise grew as people began to speak in whispered words of shock.

Laura kept her gaze of Lee, watching his squirm under the pressure as Bill shut his eyes, unable to accept what his son had just done.

As the cries of the journalists began to echo around the room, the blank look on Lee's face turned to a look of realisation. What exactly had he hoped to learn from his questioning? Why hadn't he put two and two together? Why else would she ever be using Chamalla. How had he been so stupid!

The members of the public and press stood from their seats, an array of shouting filled the room, with journalist pointing their microphones outstretched for a comment from the President. Even though she knew that she shouldn't have, Laura turned her head to look at her husband over her right shoulder. As he reluctantly nodded his head at her, she stood up from her seat in the suddenly claustrophobic witness stand, signaling a sudden and swift end to the court proceedings.

Walking away from the stand, Laura tried her best to block out the growing noise, although she was aware of the guards trying to control the audience who were pushing closer and closer towards them.

Her sights were set on Pandora. The child, who sat with a blank expression on her face, held her arms outstretched as her mother reached her. Scooping the child up in her arms, Laura turned on her heel and made her way towards the door, yearning for the comfort and silence of their private quarters, needing to shut the rest of the world - and specifically Lee - out of her head.

As the other judges exchanged confused looks, many aimed at himself, Bill shook his head silently. Lee really had no idea of what he had just done. As he stood from his seat, he knew exactly where Laura was heading.

The quickest way to the pair was through the main exit.

Aware that their chances of getting a comment from the President were slim, the press turned their attention to the Admiral. Heading down the steps at the side of the courtroom, Bill held his arms out in front of him, the palms of his hands out as he tried to push his way through the crowd. "Get out of my way" He growled, his lips tightening as he curled his fists inwards.

"I need to get my wife and daughter. Get out of my way!" Bill barked, pushing his way through the crowds of press and photographers, all of them pushing their blinding cameras into his face, like a pack of animals after their prey, while his eyes searched around the chaotic room for his wife and child. He desire to get to the pair made him throw all caution out of the room, stopping him from letting out yet another bombshell. The shock of hearing the President referred to as the Admiral's wife was enough of a distraction for Bill to force his way through the crowd and towards the door.

Pandora clutched onto her mother's blouse for dear life, she shut her fearful eyes and buried her nose into her mother's neck, seeking comfort in the woman's arms. Adjusting her hold of Pandora, Laura cradled the girl's head in her left hand while her right hand was wrapped around the girl's side. This was not how she wanted Pandora to find out.

What had he done? Lee dropped himself down, burying his face in his hands as he rested his elbows on the desk. The look of devastation and disbelief on his father's face would haunt him for life. The adrenaline rush has pushed him to it. The idea of actually being right about something for the first time in his life.

If only he could take it back.

Now everyone knew.

Laura silently cursed the black patent heels she had chosen to wear for the day, kicking them off at the door as soon as she arrived in their private quarters. As if her constant repeating nightmare wasn't enough; her stepson had just told the entire fleet that her cancer had returned.

As Bill walked down the deserted cold, grey hallways of Galactica, he spotted Tori and two of the guards standing outside the hatch door. "Admiral..." Tori began, stepping forward with cautious step towards the man, but Bill was ignorant to her presence as he opened the hatch door, slamming it behind him as he entered the privacy of their makeshift home.

Leaning against the hatch door, Bill took a deep breath in a bid to calm down his anger. He couldn't take his frustration out on either Laura or Pandora, if anyone deserved to feel his wrath then it was Lee. Turning around, Bill came face to face with his wife, who had dropped herself down on the couch, Pandora curled up on her knee, the President rocking both herself and the girl from side to side.

"Oh, Laura" Bill breathed, heading across the room to sit down beside the pair. As he wrapped his arm around Laura's shoulder, she moved to rest her head down against his arm, remaining silent as she reflected on their situation. Laura had to feel in control of everything; even more so now with her cancer, and Lee had taken the situation out of her hands and let out her secret to the entire fleet.

The trio stayed in a pleasant silence, each lost in their own thoughts until Pandora raised her head, sniffling as she rubbed her eyes. "Mama, Papa," She spoke, waiting until she had their attention before she continued. "What's cancer?" She asked fearfully, having guessed that it was something bad, something she should fear, something her mother had but she wasn't sure what it was.

Bill locked eyes with his wife for a moment, watching as her eyes were again glazed with tears as she rested her cheek against Pandora's hair, dropping an affectionate kiss on the crown of her head. Laura had told Pandora about Kara, now it was his turn to break the news to Pandora. "You see..." The man began, attempting to keep a straight face, willing his emotions to stay at bay as he spoke, explaining to his daughter what cancer was, but how Laura was going to fight it - and win.

When Bill was finished, a knock sounded from the hatch door, followed by Tori's arrival in the room. "I'm sorry Madame President, but the press and the Quorum are demanding a comment" She announced with hesitation, knowing that she had walked in on a private moment for the family. Laura reluctantly nodded her head. "Arrange a raptor for Colonial One, we'll do a press conference once we arrive there" Laura said, though she could sense that Tori was holding something back. Using her free hand, she fixed her hair as she sat up in her seat.

"What else is there, Tori?" The woman asked her assistant, watching as the woman tugged at the bottom of her blazer before speaking. "The press are asking if you and the Admiral are married, apparently the Admiral called you his 'wife' when he was leaving the courtroom" Tori explained, reaching up to touch the back of her neck as she looked away from the married couple, Laura had told her about the marriage when she questioned her about the ring, but it had went unnoticed by the press.

Bill lowered his head into his hands, remembering how he had lashed out at the press when they stopped him from getting to Laura and Pandora. "They had to find out eventually, may as well find out now" Laura thought aloud, her voice low as she ran her fingers through the gentle curls of Pandora's hair, having taken it out of its ponytail. "I'm sorry, Laura" Bill apologised, knowing that this was the last thing that Laura needed on top of everything else. Laura stood up from the couch, putting Pandora down onto the ground, taking the girl's hand before looking at her husband, forcing a reassuring smile.

As they arrived on Colonial One, Laura looked through the mirror in her office, fixing her hair and making herself presentable once more. Bill sat Pandora down on the sofa, letting her play with her crayons and book until they waited for the press conference to start. As Tori stepped inside, Laura headed through the curtain between her office and the area for the press conference.

Stopping at the podium, Laura glanced behind her at Bill as he stood beside Tori. While he usually didn't escort her to press conferences unless it was a matter of fleet security, he had insisted on coming along this time. Laura looked through the assembly of waiting press before selecting the man nearest her

"How long have you known about the cancer?" The man asked, leaning forward so that his microphone could catch her response. Laura folded her arms in front of her chest, turning at an angle to the press before she answer. "About a week" She replied, though it had felt like a lifetime. "And how advanced is the disease?" Karen asked, jumping in to ask the President a question. Before she could reply, the earlier journalist raised his hand, grabbing her attention as he spoke. "Will you be getting any more transfusions from the half cylon donor?" He asked, cautious about his choice of words. "You know, this is the type of detail that I'm not going to go into, we're looking at a game plan and I'll let you know when we have one" She replied, shrugging her shoulders and shaking her head.

"Well, how will your treatment for your illness impact your duties as President, or when you're caring for the girl, will she be going to someone else?" Karen asked, her cool demeanor didn't win any favors with the Admiral, who raised his eyebrow when she mentioned Pandora. "So far it hasn't at all, and I can assure you that Pandora isn't going anywhere" She replied, attempting to keep some form of an upbeat manner as she pushed a strand of hair behind her ear.

"Is it true that you and the Admiral have gotten married?" The blonde journalist behind Karen spoke, standing from her seat to hold her microphone out. Laura took a glance down at the gold band on her finger, its shine in the light of the room gave her some hope that her constant ordeals would come to an end. "Yes, three days ago" She confessed, unable to disguise the unguarded smile that slipped onto her face.

Perhaps this press conference wouldn't be too bad.

"Are you still taking chamalla extract?" Another journalist asked, but before Laura could speak, Tori spoke. "Don't answer that!" The black haired woman ordered, glaring at the journalist who had spoke. So much for wishful thinking. Laura turned her head slowly to look at the younger woman; had she lost her mind? Ignoring the woman, she turned around to face the press, once again bombarded with questions.

"Has the Admiral officially adopted the child?"

"How often do you hallucinate?"

"Are the rumors true that Pandora is your biological child?"

Before Laura or Bill could utter another word, Tori stepped forward, her voice traveling across the room. "Alright, enough of this crap. We're done here!" She announced, coming to step beside the podium where the President stood. Laura reached out to grasp the two sides of the podium, hoping to gather some strength from it. "Tori.." She warned, but the woman continued to speak. "You vaulters can go and pick over another carcass" Tori said, letting her emotions get the better of her as she felt the President take a hold of her arm.

Out of the corner of his eye, Bill spotted the curtain move, Pandora head appearing at the side. No doubt she had heard her name and came to investigation. Just as curious as Laura. Silently taking his leave from the conference, he stepped through the curtain, taking his daughter's hand and escorting her back over to the couch in Laura's office, away from the press and the scene that Tori was causing.

"Tori!" Laura demanded, nodding her head to signal the woman to step to the side. "Come here" She said, moving them away from the microphones and the watching press. "I'll see you inside" She ordered, grinding her teeth as she folded her arms. Tori's misbehavior was the last thing she needed.

"I'm sorry, temperatures are running a little high in the fleet these days" Laura announced, faking a wide smile as she leaned forward on the podium, looking down at the press as she tried to excuse Tori's behavior. "Who's next?" She asked, her eyes scanning on the room before they once again fell on Karen.

"Madame President, how long do you have to live?" Karen asked, dropping her hands down into her lap as she looked for a frank answer from the woman. It seemed to hit a nerve with Laura, who moved off the podium and folded her arms tight against her chest. If looks could kill, Karen would be out an airlock. "How do you have to live, Karen?" Laura asked, her voice emotionless as she glared at the woman.

Death was the last thing she needed to think about after the roller coaster ride of the day.

Death would come eventually, but not today or tomorrow.

If Laura had anything to say about it, death would not come until she was an old lady, grey and in a rocking chair, with Bill by her side and Pandora grown.

Death would not come until long after they had found Earth.


	17. Crossroads Part 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally, an update. You'll find that this chapter is shorter than the last. I spent an awful long time writing the court scenes for the last chapter so I've cut them down significantly for this chapter. I managed to delete the first 3,000 words by accident so I've basically written this chapter twice, which is one reason for the delay. I think this chapter should be nicknamed 'the twist'. We're also now at the end of series 3, meaning we have a total of twenty one chapters left of this fanfiction.

Crossroads Part 2

Tapping the side of his razor against the sink, Bill glanced over his shoulder at the sleeping pair. Without much surprise, Pandora had demanded to stay in the bunk with Laura, as though she was afraid that she might wake up and not find her mother there waiting on her. He couldn't blame her.

Bringing his razor to his cheek, he dragged the blade down against his skin, freeing it from the shaving foam. Running the water, he cleaned the surplus foam off the blade, careful to make as little noise as possible for fear of waking the pair in the next room. Bringing his razor to his neck, he was distracted by the blinking of the light above his head, causing him to lose his grip of the razor and cut against his skin, the crimson liquid pooling out of it.

"Frak me" He muttered under his breath, reaching across to lift a handful of tissues, pushing them up against his bleeding skin is a battle to stop the blood pouring from his cut. Stupid lights. Making a mental note to have someone come and check the lighting, he turned to examine the cut through the magnified mirror.

"Yell at me, I don't wanna get out of bed" Laura's breathy voice came from the darkness of the next room. Dropping his razor into the sink, Bill switched on the bedside light as he went past, sitting himself down onto the side of the bunk. "I was just thinking about going back to bed" Bill confessed, wanting nothing more than to lock the hatch door and forget about all their worries. Forget about the fleet. Forget about Laura's cancer.

"Are you feeling alright?" Laura asked, pushing herself up against the pillows, careful not to wake Pandora as she reached across to touch the man's neck, her delicate fingers pushing back his makeshift bandage. It wasn't like Bill to want to avoid anything - even if it was Baltar's trial. "Says the cancer patient" Bill protested, earning a charismatic smile from the woman, who pushed the tissue paper against the cut on his neck. "I'm fine - I just cut myself" He explained, answering her earlier question as he lifted her hand away from his neck to examine the cut himself.

Leaning back against the pillows, Laura tangled her fingers in Pandora's soft hair, the child still peacefully asleep beside her - as though she didn't have a single care in the world. "I don't want to face them" She confessed, remembering the question that had been hurled at her the day before, not just about her cancer but about Pandora and Bill as well. Could she go through that all again? "I don't want to face any of them, I just want to stay in bed all day and sleep" She revealed, knowing that nothing would make her happier than being able to catch up on some much needed sleep. The constant stress and the fatigue brought on by the chamalla was starting to catch up with her. Rubbing her eyes for a moment, she watched on as Bill tapped the tissue against his cut, looking down at the crimson covered ivory tissue to see if his cut was still producing any blood.

"I think I've stopped the bleeding" He announced, lifting the tissue away from his neck to examine it. "If you still need to be yelled at, I could give you some volume" Bill suggested, dropping the used tissue into the bin before turning to his wife, glad to see the amused glimmer in her eyes. "Alright, give it your best shot" Laura teased, one arm wrapped around Pandora while her other hand rested on Bill's arm.

"Get out of that bed" He demanded, although his tone lacked the usual commanding and booming tone that usually laced Bill's voice when giving an order. "That's not your best shot" Laura declared in a 'matter of fact' tone, raising an eyebrow as she waiting on her husband to try again.

"Get your fat lazy ass out of that rack, Adama" Bill ordered, his voice filling the dimly lit room as he tried his best to put on his 'Admiral' voice and persona, though it quickly disappeared when he caught sight of the way Laura's face seemed to brighten up as her lips turned up into a smile. "Yes Sir, okay Sir, anything you say, Sir" Laura teased between her giggling, her hand trailing down the man's arm to take ahold of his hand.

Bill's face with masked with a somber expression as he clasped his free hand over their joint ones. "Don't let them see you sweat Laura" He reminded her, his gaze fixed on the woman before him as he tried to reassure her. If anyone could do it, then would be Laura.

"Why did you say that Mama had a fat lazy ass?" Pandora mumbled against her pillow, her voice filled with sleep as she let a yawn escape her lips while stretching her arms out beside her "Why papa?" Pandora repeated as she rested her head down on Laura's chest, looking up expectedly at her father for his answer. Laura wasn't sure what to do other than chuckle to herself. The surprised look on Bill's face; the way his eyebrows seemed to disappear in his dark hairline while his eye widened.

"I said no such thing!" Bill joked, moving to nudge Pandora's shoulder in a playful manner as he beamed down at the child. Pandora shook her head defiantly, knowing exactly what she had heard. "I heard you, didn't I Mama?" Pandora protested, turning her head from her father to her mother with pleading eyes, worried that she had somehow offended the man. Nodding her head, Laura was glad of blissful moments like this, where the three of them could forget about the rest of the fleet and just be happy in each other's company. "Yes you did, little one" Laura assured the child while stroking the loose strands of her hair that had managed to escape from her ponytail.

Glancing at the clock, Bill sighed heavily before pushing himself up from the bunk. "I'll need to go soon" He thought aloud, for the first time he hated the idea of having to go to the CIC, even more so today. "I'll need to get ready to go to see Cottle" Laura added, pushing the hair out of her face as she felt Pandora pull at her arm. "I can go with you right?" Pandora pleaded with wide eyes, hunching forward as she waited for the woman's answer.

Watching someone you loved - even more so a parent - battle their way through an illness was never easy. Laura herself had been forced to endure her mother's suffering under the same treatment for two years. Yet she was not Pandora. No doubt the girl would find a way into the hospital wing regardless of whither or not they allowed her to come. "Go and get ready" Laura replied, nodding her head as her lips twitched up in an assuring smile.

As Pandora lowered herself off the bunk in search of something to wear, Laura pushed herself forward in the bed, throwing the covers back to the side as moved to sit beside her husband. "She'll be fine" Bill reminded her, knowing that if there wasn't many children as stubborn and persistent as Pandora. Laura hummed in response, resting her back against the pillows as she shut her eyes for a moment.

Why couldn't things be simple for once?

"Well, congratulations. You've survived your first diloxan treatment" Cottle announced, checking that the IV was correctly inserted into Laura's arm. Once satisfied, he took a step back from the bed, crossing his arms as he watched his patient.

Laura groaned as she lowered herself down onto the bed, her arms wrapped around Pandora as the child curled up to her side. "Talk about the cure being worse than the disease" She muttered, feeling the drugs running through her veins, a bitter taste gathering in the back of her throat.

"Well next time, bring a book or some paperwork to help keep your mind off of it and it'll also help keep your blood pressure down" Cottle suggested, although his voice was laced with sarcasm as his eyes glanced around the remainder of the sickbay.

Laura rolled her eyes as she rested her cheek against the crown of Pandora's head. Cottle clearly knew nothing about paperwork. "Yeah right. Pandora's all the distraction that I need" She reminded him, her arms wrapped tightly around the child, who buried her head against her mother's neck, content to simply enjoy the woman's presence.

"Now if you don't mind, I have other patients" Cottle declared, sensing that the President would be far from happy if she had an audience to her suffering.

Resting her head down onto the pillow, she used the hand that was wrapped around Pandora's shoulder to shoo the doctor away. "All right go" She said, shutting her eyes as she silently wondered how she had eve r gotten into this situation.

She moved her head against the pillows in a bid to stop the pain that was running down her neck. "Oh gods..." Laura groaned, trying to disguse the flash of pain that came to her face as she shut her eyes. Stretching her jaw, she curled up her shoulders as the diloxan started to kick in.

There she was again. Right back in the Opera House.

Turning the corner, her eyes darted around the room in desperate search of the girl. On the balcony across from her, she spotted the two girls walking hands in hand. Pandora was in her crimson red silk dress while Hera wore a virgin white top and skirt, paired with a matching beanie.

Quickening her pace, Laura arrived at the top of the stairs in time to spot the pair disappearing down a side staircase, Pandora leading the way while Hera held onto the handrail.

"Pandora! Hera!" She called, her voice travelling through the deserted Opera House. Making a dash down the staircase, she spotted the Six out of the corner of her eye.

There she was again. Arriving at the bottom of the staircase, Laura felt as though she was frozen to the spot as the Six bent down to lift Hera from the ground while Baltar reached out to take Pandora's hand before they disappeared into the blinding light behind the set of golden doors that acted as the gates for their journey

Laura's shattering, shrilling scream woke herself up, her arms tightening in a deadlock as she clasped Pandora against her chest, her eyes being forced open as she shot up from the bed, taking Pandora along with her.

"Mama?" Pandora's voice was filled with fear as her arms wrapped around her mother's neck. Sleep laced her eyes as she tried her best to keep them open as her hand tried to disguise a yawn that escaped her lips.

Putting Pandora down onto the ground, Laura kept a tight grip of her daughter's hand as she lead the way out of the cubicle, throwing back the generic grey curtain as she walked, her diloxan treatment trailing behind her.

"You're both freaking out at the same time!" Cottle exclaimed, his eyes darting from one mother to the other. Standing between the pair, he stood expectedly, waiting on an explanation from one of the pair.

Laura took in the look of fear and terror in Sharon's eyes. There was only one explanation for such a look. Sharon had shared the vision with her. How was that possible?

Feeling Pandora rest her head down against her leg, she turned to face Cottle."We need a moment" Laura confessed, her hand coming to rest on the back of Pandora's hair as she tried to force her shaking hands to be still. The fear, adrenaline and terror were still rushing through her veins.

"Take this off, get this off me please" Laura's voice changed from one of desperation to a simple plea. She couldn't hold Pandora in her arms if she had to drag along the diloxan equipment as well. Right now, all she wanted to do was carry Pandora back to their quarters and lock the hatch. Yet, you couldn't run away from your fears - especially not one like this.

"Will someone please tell me what's going on here?" Cottle demanded, growing tired of his questions being ignored by the women. He was silenced by Laura's infamous glare before he moved to disconnect the IV from the President's arm, knowing better than to challenge Laura any further.

As Cottle, along with several watching medical staff, left the area of the sickbay, Laura returned her attention back to Sharon and Hera. She knew the look on Sharon's face all too well. It was the look of a mother terrified for her daughter. She knew it because she was wearing the exact same expression.

"We need to go and see the Six" Laura decided, if they had both shared the vision, then no doubt Caprica Six had also been there.

Laura had insisted that the girls would be kept in Bill's quarters along with Tori and several armed guards. "She might have some of the answers that we need" Laura explained to the cylon woman beside her as they walked through the deserted grey hallways of Galactica, heading towards the temporary home of the blonde cylon model.

Arriving at the sealed metal door, Laura nodded her head at the two armed guards who stood watch at the prisoner's cell. Waiting for the men to enter, Laura followed behind them, Sharon on her heels as she eyed the blonde woman who sat on the sterile grey bed in the middle of the empty room.

"Go outside" Laura ordered, the palms of her hand resting against her lower back as her eyes rested on the anxious woman before her. "Shut the door" She added a moment later as the two men advanced towards it. With a mutter of 'Yes, Ma'am' and a nod, the two guards disappeared through the door, following the President's order by locking the door behind them.

"I'm sorry about the shackles" Laura began, deciding that it would help to gain the woman's trust before she started questioning her about the vision; more specifically Pandora's presence in said vision.

Caprica Six's lips curled up slightly, though the smile was flat as her eyes wandered to the ground

"Were you with us a moment ago...?" Laura asked, her question caught the cylon off guard as her eyes darted up to the redhaired woman. "..in the lobby of the opera house?" Laura folded her arms in front of her chest, trying her best to read the woman's reactions. It didn't take a genius to work out Caprica Six's answer.

The Six lifted her elbows off her bare legs, her back becoming as straight as an arrow, her eyebrows almost disappearing into her light hairline. Her eyes widened as she looked from one woman to the other.

"I'll take that as a yes by the look on your face" Laura thought aloud, confident that her apparent dream was something much more if not only her and Sharon were sharing the dream, but also Caprica Six. "I was there too" Sharon added, making her presence known as she sighed heavily "So was Hera" She revealed, watching as a look of realisation masked Caprica's face.

"As was Pandora" Laura spoke once more, knowing that the girls were central to the vision. Everything seem to revolve around Hera and Pandora. Why?

"That shouldn't be possible" Caprica Six protested, her voice low as she spoke in a state of disbelief.

"Add it to the list" Sharon said, shaking her head as she came to accept the latest hurdle that they were going to face. The Gods really did enjoy testing them all.

"Were you trying to reach Pandora?" Laura asked, trying to keep her anger - which was only increased by her anxiety and fear for Pandora's safety - at bay as she questioned the cylon. She had to take a reasonable approach with this, surely there was a simple explanation for all this.

Caprica shook her head slowly. "I don't know" She admitted, lifting herself up from the low bed so that she was at eye level with the two mothers.

"I just knew that I had to protect her with my life - Hera as well" The Six confessed, pleading with the older woman to understand her position before her eyes shifted over to Sharon for a moment, then back onto the President.

"Why?" Laura demanded, her hands coming to rest on her hips as she grew impatient, sensing a need to understand Pandora's presence in the visions - they could no longer be written off as dreams - that she was sharing with both the Six and Sharon. Was she really having vision with two cylons about a cylon-human hybrid and Pandora? It didn't seem possible.

"I don't know, but I feel like...like I know her from somewhere" Six revealed, staring at Laura with wide eyes as she brought her fingertips to rest on both sides of her temples. She knew Pandora, she just couldn't figure out where from. It was as though her mind was blocking the memories out. A wall that she couldn't break down.

"One of your other models might have been in contact with her before the exodus from New Caprica" Sharon suggested, pursing her lips as she tried to come up with a reasonable explanation for what Caprica Six was feeling.

"Does Pandora remember anything before the exodus?" Caprica Six asked, tilting her head as she frowned her brow, her features masked with confusion. Maybe the child could explain their connection.

Shaking her head, Laura crossed her arms in front of her chest.

Pandora had nothing to do with the cylons. Laura refused to believe that she , everything was pointing towards it.

"You need to find a way to tap into the memories she's hiding away" Sharon spoke up from the corner of the room, taking three small strides towards Laura, looking the woman in the eyes as she straightened her shoulder.

"Why do you want to help?" Laura questioned suspiciously, moving to fold her arms defensively in front of her chest. After all, she was the woman who had faked Hera's death, handing her over to another mother to be cared for.

"If they want Pandora, they want Hera. Regardless of if you like it not, Madame President, we're in this together" Sharon reminded her, looking the President in the eye as she spoke to her.

Laura was positive that their day couldn't get any worse. Until it did.

Pandora slipped forward in her seat, her eyes darkening with confusion as she took in the appearance of her the former C.A.G sitting in the witness box. "Mama, what's he doing?" She wondered in a hushed voice, slipping her hand through her mother's arm before she glanced back at her brother.

"I don't know, Pandy" Laura confessed, resting her hand on the crown of the child's head, unable to hide her anxiety over the fact that Pandora and Baltar were in the same room. Did he have knowledge of the vision as well? What could he possibly want with Pandora?

As the prosecution began to protest, Laura tilted her head towards Pandora, her eyes trained on her step-son. "You can appeal to the President once there's a verdict..." Bill began, looking from left to right at his fellow judges. "but I for one, would like to hear this witness testify" He concluded, resting his back against his seat as he waited expectedly for his son's testimony.

Lee had already betrayed their family once. Laura silently wondered if he could do it again. He had already put the knife through their chests, he may as well give it a twist, even dig it in deeper.

As her stepson spoke, giving his testimony to the anxiously waiting court room. Laura could see the anger boiling up in his husband. It didn't take a genius to work out that Lee's testimony could turn the entire court case on its head.

When it rained, it poured. Lee seemed intent on making that the truth.

Slipping the frames of her glasses against her shirt, Laura straightened her shoulders as she sat like a judge, waiting to hear the verdict.

"This tribunal, on a vote of three for two..."

A collective intake of breath could be heard throughout the room.

"...finds you not guilty"

The room fell into a momentary silence before the shouts began to sound, echoing off the walls as many in the audience stood to their feet in protest.

The shock hit Laura first, before she was filled with a dying need to put as much distant between herself - along with Pandora - and Baltar. Clasping the child's hand in her own, she led the way towards the door, ushered forward by her attendants.

Maybe it was the knowledge that Baltar could now walk freely through the fleet, maybe it was Lee's betrayal of their family; but Laura felt a need to tell Bill everything.

As she heard the hatch door opening behind her, she took a deep breath as she walked to the side of the room.

"I had a vision" Laura spoke from the shadows of their quarters, her back to the man as she poured herself a healthy glass of whiskey.

Bill sat himself down on the bunk, looking up at his wife with a worried gaze. If he knew anything about Laura's visions, it was that they were not often of a pleasant and happy nature.

"Pandora's in it - and Hera too" Laura revealed, her voice breathless as she raised the glass to her soft lips, allowing the cold glass to chill against her lips before she took a sip. "One of the cylons took them" She pulled her whiskey glass away, putting it down onto the table as she heard Bill's sudden intake of breath.

Bill's heart felt as though it had dropped out of his chest. Pandora. Innocent little Pandora.

"Nothing is going to happen to her, Laura. I promise you" Bill swore as he pushed himself up from the bunk, his long strides brought him to his wife's side in a few short seconds.

"What if they had hurt her Bill?" Laura whispered, her voice laced with fear as the tears began to pool around the corner of her eyes as Bill wrapped his arms around her shoulders, pulling her back against his chest.

"You don't know that..." Bill began, trying to work out a reasonable explanation for Laura's alleged vision. "Are you positive it was a vision?" He asked, earning a nod from Laura in response.

"Sharon had the same one. She was there too - and Caprica Six" Laura confessed, feeling Bill's sharp intake of breath against her neck, causing the hairs against her skin to stand straight.

"One of the Sixes knew Pandora before the exodus.." She added, feeling his grip of her tighten as he tried to access the situation in his head, no doubt coming to the same possible conclusion that she had.

As the hatch door was pulled open, Pandora's voice echoed around the silent room "Mama?" She called as she stepped into the room, her small legs carrying her towards the couple.

Laura's eyes fell to the ground, trying to hide the fear in her eyes as Bill reached out for their daughter.

"Papa, what's wrong with Mama?" Pandora asked curiously, watching as her mother move to stand behind her father's oak desk, flicking through various files in search of one particular item.

What if Pandora was a cylon? Finding the item she had been searching for, Laura made her way across the room once more.

Seeing Laura sitting herself down at the table, Bill carried the young girl over, placing her down on the seat across from Laura. "I need you to tell me everything that you remember Pandora, before I found you" She said, leaning forward in her seat, the photograph sitting on her lap as she looked at her daughter with pleading eyes.

"There was a blonde woman" Pandora announced, folding her hands on her lap, her eyes looking out into the distance. Bill sat down beside Pandora, resting his elbow on the table as he watched the child closely.

Placing the picture down on the table, Laura held her breath as she waited for Pandora's reply. "That's her" Pandora replied, nodding her head with slight hesitation, feeling the tension, fear and anxiety rolling off her mother in waves. Laura shared a knowing look with her husband.

The woman in the photo was Caprica Six. Her story seemed to be true.

"She took me to your ship" Pandora announced, her eyes brightening as she recalled the events. "What?" Laura asked in disbelief, her eyes widening with shock as her brow began to crease.

Pandora hadn't found her way onto Colonial One by accident.

The cylons had put her there. Was this all some scheme?

"She told me to close my eyes and not make a sound, that you would find me" Pandora explained, her hands moving in front of her in gestures which showed her excitement at remembering her past.

Instead of putting the pieces of the puzzle together, the pieces just seemed to be accumulating in front of Laura's eyes.

Standing up from his seat, Bill took the photograph with him, crumpling the edges up as he tried to breath deeply to calm himself down, disappearing off to the shadows of his desk.

After tucking Pandora under the covers, Laura watched the sleeping child, taking in the gentle rising and falling of her chest. All the seemingly human features of her. Pandora had been with the cylons before the exodus from New Caprica, everything was pointing towards her being a cylon.

"What does this mean?" Bill asked, cradling his glass of whiskey between sips of the burning liquid.

"No one can know - not until we've figured everything out. Even then we can't tell anyone. We both know what they would do if they got their hands on her. She and Hera are in that vision for a reason, we just have to figure out why" Laura thought aloud, Pandora and herself were the only humans in the vision - yet she had been injected with the Hera's blood and was under the influence of Chamalla, though Pandora... could her mysterious past involve the cylons?

"Bill, what if she's a cylon?" Laura confessed her greatest fear, the one that had been eating away at her from the night of her first vision. The elephant in the room had been addressed.

The Six claimed that she knew Pandora, or one of her fellow models did. Pandora's identification of Caprica Six from the photograph was evidence of that.

"She's our daughter first and foremost, regardless of what else she is" Bill remained her, placing his glasses down onto the table as his eyes glanced over at the sleeping child.

Sharon had proven that being a cylon did not make you the immortal enemy of the Colonial Fleet. Sharon had proven that cylons could change. Hera was a human-cylon hybrid, yet Laura had seen first hand that Hera was like any other human child. Pure, innocent and gentle.

"We'll take her to Cottle tomorrow, he can do a full blood test" Bill said, the wheels turning in his head. Pandora was family - Pandora was their daughter. Anything else that she might be was insignificant.

As Bill headed towards their bunk, Laura sat in the welcomed darkness of the room, allowing the vision to replay itself over and over again in her head.

Pandora was a cylon. There was no other explanation.

As the shrilling ring of the phone echoed around the room, Pandora groaned as she woke up from her sleep while Bill pattered across the room to lift the receiver off its stand as Laura went in search of her blazer.

"They're preparing for the next jump" Bill revealed as he put the phone down, throwing on his jacket as Laura lowered herself down into her heels while Pandora lifted her blanket from her bed, heading towards the door. They had all fallen into a routine over the past weeks. As Bill led the way down to the CIC, Laura held onto Pandora's hand as the child tried her best to rub the sleep out of her eyes.

As Bill entered the room, he headed towards the main console. "Mr. Gaeta, prepare jump. We're going to the Ionian Nebula" Bill announced as he came to a stop, watching as the younger man nodded before preparing the coordinates for the jump. Laura stood at the side of the console, allowing Pandora to lean up against it as she ran her fingers carefully through the girl's gentle curls.

"Jump complete" Gaeta spoke, lifting his hands from the controls as he addressed the President and Admiral. "All fleet ships reporting in" He revealed, looking up at the various screens above their heads.

"Let's see what's out there" Bill suggested, his own eyes darting up to the monitors.

It was as though the room was spinning. It was as though the air had been knocked right out of her chest. Taking her glasses off, Laura abandoned them on the controls, covering her face with her hands before grasping onto the sides of the console, lowering her head down as she tried to block out the spinning motion and blurred vision. Bill reached his hand out towards his wife, taking in her pale complexion and the shaking of her hands.

The lights began to flicker, bringing the room in and out of momentary darkness. The motions shut off one by one, then the lights stopped completely. It was as though everything was dead.

"Zip rep" Bill called, his attention taken away from his wife as his eyes darted around the room to access any and all damage that the power loss had caused.

"Mama?" The child's concerned voice brought Bill's attention back to Laura's condition. "Are you okay?" He asked, stepping forward to rest his hand on his wife's shoulder. Her skin had turned ghostly pale. "Forget about me. I'm fine" Laura assured him, her words muffled into the sleeve of her blazer. "I could never forget about you" Bill reminded her, making small circles on her back in a bid to offer her some form of comfort.

Pandora reached up to wrap her arms around the woman's middle, resting her head on Laura's hip as she shut her eyes. A mixture of fear and anxiety ran through the child's veins.

Taking the flashlight from one of the junior officers, Bill shone the bright light down onto the console, trying his best to read the system. "Some kind of power surge" Bill suggested, his eyes glancing over to his wife as the redhead slowly raised her head from the console, her own eyes glued to the monitors above them as they jumped back to life. "Can we have a damage report immediately?" Bill requested, moving towards his daughter as he watched the girl's eyes widen. Pandora had always been afraid of the dark. "The black out is fleet wide, Admiral" Dee called from her desk, looking over her shoulders as the monitors began to come back online. Dropping a reassuring hand on Pandora's shoulder, he glanced over at his daughter in law with a worried expression. "It was also simultaneously restored to all ships" Dee revealed, her voice laced with confusion while Bill read through the monitors. Dozens of ships didn't naturally lose power at once then regain it simultaneously. Especially when they ran on separate power sources.

It was then that Laura noticed it.

"Admiral. Admiral!" She called, gaining not only her husband's attention, but that of several of the crews. "Dradius contact!' Gaeta announced, moving across his station as he spoke. "Massive cylon fleet on intercept course" He informed the admiral as he moved to put the stations onto red alert. "Mr. Gaeta. Sound action stations immediately, I want to emergency jump our entire fleet" Bill ordered, feel Pandora beginning to flinch at his side, her shoulders tensing as she looked between Laura and Bill for some form of explanation.

"Sir, all fleet ships were powered down during the outage. It'll take at least twenty minutes to spin up the FTL drives" Helo confessed, a sense of dread overcoming him as he dropped the bombshell on the Admiral and his crew. Moving around the console, Laura gently pulled her daughter away from Bill's side, moving her into her own arms as she looked across at her husband.

"We just don't have twenty minutes" Bill announced somberly, they couldn't hold off a cylon fleet for twenty minutes, not without being able to jump away. Laura stood silently, clutching Pandora to her side as she watched the crew moving throughout the CIC to get to their action stations. She glanced over her shoulder as Tori and Tigh appeared through the hatch door, each returning to the side of their respective leader.

"Alert vipers are aware!" Gaeta announced over his shoulder. Pandora bit the inside of her lip, pulling both her cotton blanket and her stuffed elephant up close to her chest as she tried to block out the noise. "Who's in Viper Three?" Helo asked confused as he looked up at the monitor. "It's got to be Lee" Laura said, running her eyes across the other vipers. There was one too many for the amount of pilots they had, and it would be just like Lee to jump into a viper in the middle of a fight.

As though to confirm her suspicions, Lee spoke over his intercom system "Apollo in Viper 3. I have a boggie on my ten, I'm going to go and check it out" He said, turning his viper to the side as he went to investigate. Bill sighed as he rested his hands down onto the console, pressing all his weight down as he felt the burden already starting to build on his shoulders. This was all they needed; Lee caught up in the middle of the fight.

"What the frak?!" Lee's voice sounded through the CIC, earning an exchange of confused glances between his father and stepmother, who both narrowed their eyes as they watched the monitors, trying to piece together the situation.

"Hi Lee" The voice spoke over the intercom.

Laura stopped, as though frozen in time as the voice echoed through the CIC.

Kara.

"Kara?" Lee asked in a state of disbelief, his lips parting as his eyes widened.

"It really is me" Kara announced between chuckles.

It couldn't possibly be her. Could it?

"Kara?" Pandora whispered fearfully, lifting her head from Laura's hip as she cautiously opened her eyes.

"It's going to be okay" Kara promised as she beamed the man a smile. "I've been to Earth. I know where it is and I'm going to take us there."


	18. He That Believeth In Me

**Chapter 18 || He That Believeth In Me**

Bill froze on the spot; as if time itself had stopped.

Kara's voice was floating towards them from the intercom; a voice he doubted he would ever hear again until he would pass from this world to the next. Yet, there it was, as clear as day, just within arm's reach - but _how?_

Pandora's eyes dashed between Bill and Laura, both were battling with their emotions. In her mind, nothing made sense. Lee had told her that Kara was gone, that had she went to sleep and would never wake up. Now, the woman's voice was echoing around the CIC. Laura took a sharp inhaling of breath, her arm wrapping itself tighter around Pandora's shoulder, keeping the girl at her side.

"Identify that ship immediately" Bill ordered, his eyes trained on the monitoring screens that were stationed above his head. "Sir, checking for colonial recognition codes" Gaeta called over his shoulder, his fingers moving across the machines sitting in front of him, the lights flashing a blinding shade of red and blue. "Get Lee on line!" The Admiral barked, knowing that he couldn't let his mind - or his heart - believe it was really Kara at the end of the line. It could all be some elaborate trick to fool them into a false sense of security. "Trying, Sir" Dee replied, her headset clasped against her ears as she moved across her work station, trying to get a hold of their CAG.

"That's her voice alright" Helo began to reason, his words sitting uneasily in Laura's mind as she slipped her arm from Pandora's shoulder, taking the girl's hand as she leaned forward slightly. "Hold on" She warned the trio of men, knowing all to well that she had to be the voice of reason in this situation. "It is not real; it is a trap" Laura concluded, her eyes glancing up towards her husband. "Duplicate recognition codes!" Bill ordered, his patience running thinner with each passing moment. "Checking" Gaeta called, starting up his tests once again.

"Hostiles in bound!" Gaeta's voice filled the room as the overhead monitors began to beep frantically, alerting the officers below to the presence of their cylon enemies. Laura's head snapped up, her arms leaving the island to wrap around Pandora, holding the child close to her as Bill began rhyming off his orders. "Take them out!" He ordered, his voice getting drowned out by Helo's voice in the background as he spoke over the intercom to the pilots.

Laura knew her husband all to well, his heart would rule over his head, and he would most likely believe that the voice on the other end of the line really was Kara. "Admiral, it's a cylon trick" She pleaded with him, finally earning the man's attention as he looked away from the monitors long enough to make eye contact with his wife.

Pandora's fingers wrapped around her mother's jacket as Bill braced Tigh with orders to get anyone who had ever held a stick before up into the air. The girl's knuckles tightened around the material as she kept her eyes sealed shut. It couldn't be Kara; it wasn't Kara. She was meant to be cold and dead, locked away in an eternal sleep. Sensing the growing discomfort of her child, Laura silently wished that she had never brought the girl to the CIC, it was an area that Pandora rarely ventured too; only ever to see Bill as he finished his shift or to with Laura if they were passing through. The girl had never witnessed a cylon attack before; it was something Laura had hoped to shield her from for as long as possible.

"Sir, we've lost Pyxis" Gaeta cried as he spun around on his chair for a moment before returning to his work. Laura shook her head, bowing it as she spoke "Oh my god, Captain Tarney. 600 souls on that ship" She revealed, unable to comprehend such a sudden loss of an immense number of lives. As President, everything was a numbers game for her. They were all that was left of the human race, the last hope for humanity - every number counted. "How did they find us?" She asked, leaning slightly onto the island, trying to comfort Pandora while keeping her professional poker face on. "That's a question, isn't it?" Bill muttered in response, wishing he had the answer for her; it would have made all of their lives a whole lot easier.

Laura felt torn between taking Pandora out of the CIC, and staying to offer Bill a shoulder to lean on. Bill ruled by his heart; if he believed even for a second that the voice on the other end really was Kara, then it was her job to make him understand that it could be a trick - a horrible, wicked trick.

The entire vessel shook as the missiles bounced off the hull, sending Galactica rocking from side to side, the overhead monitoring flashing wildly as they appeared to almost bounce from their cases. The shock caused her to lose her balance, sending both her and Pandora sideways into the station in front of them. Bill's hand rested against her shoulder as he helped her up, moving around the station to stand beside them.

_Frak formalities._

"Are you okay?" He asked, looking from Laura to Pandora as the child hesitated before nodding her head, while Laura spoke softly. "We're fine" She assured him, turning her attention back to the monitors above their heads.

"Sir, the cylon strike force has just turned back to their ships" Gaeta announced, confusion filled his voice as he glanced behind at the Admiral, unable to understand the motive of their enemy. A deadly silence fell upon the trio, each looking more confused and uncertain than the next. "The baseships are spinning up" He added a moment later, turning to face the Admiral, XO and President.

"Helo, have our fighters cover our withdraw" Bill ordered, unable to relax until they had put as much distance between the cylons and the fleet as physically possible.

"Maybe something's changed" Tori suggested, her words making Laura's shoulders tense up, her protective hold on Pandora tightening. Could Pandora be the change? Were the cylons aware of her visions in the Opera House? Pandora and Hera seemed to have some kind of a connection, linked together by Pandora's past connection to one of the Sixes on New Caprica.

Laura kept her eyes trained on Tigh and Tori "Like what?" she asked, trying to reason with herself. There was no way that the cylons could know about the visions. "I have no idea, Madam President" Tigh responded, his voice shaking somewhat as he turned his head away to look up at the monitors.

As the jump was completed, Bill moved to scoop the traumatized child up into his arms, letting her bury her face against his neck, her hands wrapping themselves around his neck as she shut her eyes. The journey to their quarters was mainly silent, except for Pandora's occasional cry of _"Kara"_ against her father's chest. Arriving at the hatch, Laura turned around to face her husband, holding her arms out for the girl. "You need to go" She reminded him, knowing that Kara's viper would be in the hanger deck at any moment. "I'll be back soon" Bill promised, opening the hatch for Laura as she carried Pandora inside.

Bill could only pray that this wasn't some wicked trick, that it was instead some sort of a... _miracle._

* * *

**_Adama Family Quarters_ **

* * *

Laura glanced up from her spot on the couch as the hatch door opened. Lee entered first, followed by his father and then with Kara trailing behind them, the guards stopped at the hatch to take their watch over the private quarters of the President and Admiral of the Colonial Fleet.

An awkward silence fell over the dysfunctional family. Bill sat himself down beside Pandora while Lee hovered in the corner as Kara dropped herself down on her usual seat across from the couch, Laura's eyes trained on every move she made.

It was the child who broke the uncomfortable silence. "You...you're here," Pandora stuttered, staring at the blonde pilot as though she had been resurrected from the dead "but...how?" She turned her head to address the question to her mother, her bottom lip trembling as she struggle to comprehend the situation. Kara was dead - she was meant to be dead - yet here she was, standing in front of them all.

Pandora's words hardly registered with the pilot, who simply leaned back on her seat, refusing to answer the child's innocent question. As Laura rested her hand on Pandora's shoulder, holding her daughter to her side, Kara's eyes caught sight of the gold band that glimmered on her left hand, before she spotted an identical one on Bill's hand. Chuckling to herself, Kara shook her head as she leaned forward in her chair, folding her hands together as she smirked. "I guess the rumors are true... Pandora really is an Adama" Kara remarked sarcastically as she glared from Laura to Bill.

If looks could kill, then the glare that Laura threw towards Kara would surely have left the woman six feet under ground, or alternatively out of the nearest airlock.

Standing up from her seat, Laura stood in front of her child, defiantly crossing her arms and she looked down her nose at the blonde woman. "I don't believe you fully comprehend the position you're in right now" She warned her, knowing that Bill was the one thing stopping her from throwing the possible cylon into the brig.

Kara simply shook her head, turning her attention to Bill as she spoke. "What's Cottle's verdict?" She asked the Admiral, who dropped the doctor's reports onto the coffee table that separated Kara from the Adama family. "Everything checks out" Bill confirmed, knowing that if Kara continued her standoff behavior then she would be digging herself a hole that even he couldn't help her out of. "So I'm me then - not a cylon" Kara directed her statement towards the President, who placed her hands on her hips before glaring down at the woman. They all knew full well that both Cottle and Baltar had been wrong before - Boomer was proof of that. "That is why you had me tested, right?" She asked, not believing her ears that the people she had once considered her family thought that she could be a cylon.

"Kara, no one said you were a cylon" Lee assured her, speaking from his end of the sofa, leaning forward as if reaching towards the woman to offer her some form of comfort. "But you were thinking it" Kara snapped back, clenching her jaw as she glared at the President. "We had to be sure Kara" Bill explained, knowing that he would have done the same regardless of who had been in that viper; even if it had of been Laura. "Fair enough" Kara shrugged her shoulders and leaned back in her seat, turning her head away like a child in a temper tantrum.

"Let's go through it again" Laura said, trying to give the woman the benefit of the doubt without dropping her defensive guard. "How many times do you want to hear it?" Kara baited the woman, her blood boiling as she fought the urge to scream at the top of her lungs. "As many times as it takes to make sense" Laura challenged her, wishing that the woman would simply cooperate with her.

"I followed a heavy raider in the storm, I took a few hits, when I came through it I was orbiting this planet. It's yellow moon and star matches the description in Pythia" Kara told the group, moving her hand towards the photographs that now decorate the coffee table "I took these photos in orbit. The star patters match what we saw in the tomb of Athena" She argued, failing to understand why she was being treated as though she was nothing more than a cylon prisoner.

"How did you get here?" Laura interrogated the pilot, feeling more irritated with each passing moment. "I told you, I don't know exactly." Kara urged, praying to the Lords of Kobol that Laura would back off her and simply accept her version of events as being the fact of the matter. "Well, that's just not good enough, Captain" Laura disagreed, shaking her head as she felt Pandora shuffle around on the chair behind her, the girls feet brushing against the back of her trousers. "Tell us everything you remember" She demanded, sitting herself back down onto the sofa, consoling the unusually silent Pandora by taking a hold of the girl's hand.

Kara sighed keeping her eyes trained on the floor. "I remember taking the photos, turning my ship...and then I'm not sure" She said, feeling as though she had been defeated by the woman across from her.

Bill bowed his head silently, letting Pandora curl into his side as he became to contemplate the idea that Laura could be right. It might not be Kara sitting in front of them, it could all be an elaborate cylon trick. Kara watched the man, as though seeing the doubt in his eyes before she spoke once again "I remember a gas planet with rings, I..remember a flashing triple star and a comet, then I was back with the fleet" She concluded, her missing memories left her more irritated than anything else, it even made her start to doubt herself.

Nothing added up; it made no sense.

"And for you, this all took six hours" Laura offered, disbelief sounding in her voice as she tried to verbally understand the pilot's story. "I do not understand the time discrepancy either okay, all I know is that I was there, I took the pictures, I didn't imagine it" She fought back, feeling as though she was being hounded by a pack of wolves.

When the guards escorted Kara away, Bill turned his head to watch Laura embrace Pandora, letting the girl rest her head against her chest as she curled up. Kara had hurt Pandora more than the child could have thought possible, her ignorant refusal to acknowledge the child had hurt the girl beyond belief. This was where he needed to be; but he was the Admiral of the Colonial Fleet, he had a duty and a job to carry out. Pandora - and even Laura - would need to wait.

* * *

_**The Hanger Deck** _

* * *

Laura had contemplated bringing Pandora with her, but the child was so emotionally exhausted that it was perhaps the worse thing that Laura could have done for the girl. Instead, she left the child off at the daycare, watching as she headed across the room to Hera. The bond that the pair had seemed to be more than just friendship; _a sister like bond_.

When she reached the hanger deck, Bill and the Chief were examining the viper that Kara had flown in on. From what little of it that she could hear, she knew that her initial gut instinct had been right. The Kara who had came back to them was not the one who had seemingly died a few months before hand.

"So it's not the same ship then?" Laura asked for confirmation, folding her arms as she stood at the tail of the viper. "Unless she found a hell of a body shop out there Ma'am, then no it's not" The man confirmed, watching as Lee headed up the steps to look into the pilot's seat. "Admiral, this is not the outside either. There's no record of where this ship has been" He explained, with both Laura and Bill stopping before the computer to look at the empty data that sat before them.

Laura knew had been right all along. "Okay, put her back in the brig" She ordered, knowing that Bill wouldn't be able to find the strength to put the young woman that he considered his daughter, behind the bars of the brig so soon after her apparent resurrection.

"What? So some things don't add up and we're back to thinking she's a cylon. What about Cottle's test?" Lee cried, moving down from the steps to stand between her father and stepmother. Kara was family, and if Zak had of been the one who walked off that viper, none of this would have been happening.

"She could have been one from the beginning" Laura suggested, knowing that Kara could simply have been under the same illusion as Boomer - a sleeper agent waiting to attack. "I know how you feel about her Bill, but that could be exactly what the cylons could be counting on" She reminded her husband, reaching out to rest her hand on his arm. "So we're right back to the beginning. There could be cylons right here and we wouldn't know it until they put a bullet in our heads" Bill concluded, finally coming to believe the idea that Laura was planting in his head. Kara could be a cylon; there was nothing playing in her favor. Could he risk having a possible cylon so close to Pandora in the wake of Laura's shared visions of the Opera House?

Laura pursed her lips as she thought out loud, pacing across the floor in front of the viper. "That cylon fleet had enough fire power to blow us out of the sky, but instead they ran and jumped. Then there's Kara Thrace suddenly back from the dead with a path to Earth, if Kara can lead us off our course to Earth..." Something in the back of her head warned her that the cylons had not just abandoned their attack by some stroke of luck. She could think of only two explanations - the 'Final Five' and Pandora

"Course? What course?" Lee asked, shaking his head as he screwed up his face in disapproval. "The nebula was meant to be another clue on the way to earth!" He protested, feeling as though he was the only one advocating for Kara's innocence. She couldn't be a cylon; he would have known...he would have felt it. "The nebula is only a roadsign on the way to earth" Laura reasoned with him, glancing over her shoulder at him. "What if Kara was the clue we were meant to find?" Lee proposed, knowing that Kara's supposed discover of Earth was the only card he had to play against his stepmother. She turned her head to address Bill, crossing her arms "And what if she's playing you and all of us?" She asked, silence falling upon them all before she dropped her arms.

"I need to get back to Pandora, but I have something to do first, I'll see you whenever you're done dealing...with this" Laura informed him, leaving the small group behind in the hanger deck as she made her way through the deserted hallways of Galactica, her heart ruling over her own head as her heart pounded in her head.

* * *

_**Caprica's Prison Cell** _

* * *

Caprica stared blankly at Laura as the guard shut the door behind the President. The older woman stopped in the center of the room, as though she had forgotten her purpose for coming to visit the prisoner in the first place.

"I don't know why I'm here" Laura confessed, knowing that some sixth sense had carried her through the hallways of Galactica and straight towards the cylon woman before her. "Yes I do" She corrected herself, moving forward slightly "I'm here because of the things that we've...shared and that we've seen" Laura explained, the memories of the vision played out across her mind, the terror that had ran through her veins as Pandora and Hera moved out of her reach, disappearing into the bask of white light that almost blinded her.

"The visions in the Opera House" Caprica spoke up, her heart heavy with remorse as she thought of the children whom the visions focused around. "You went further than me, you saw more than I did" The older woman reminded her, pausing for a moment as she breathed deeply, "I thought that maybe you could help me..." She began, trying to press the information out of the cylon as painlessly as possible. "Help you how?" Caprica raised her eyebrow, moving forward on the bed, her eyes trained on the woman before you. "I need to know about the other fives, the types we've never seen, the ones that..Baltar...calls the Final Five" Laura explained, disdain filling her voice as she spoke the man's name, her mind still not able to comprehend the fact that he was now a free man, enjoying his liberty of their ship.

"And you want to know if Kara Thrace is one of them?" Caprica suggested, moving her head higher as she inspected Laura, the pilot's sudden reappearance had been hot news around the fleet, even making its way to her prison cell. "Yes" Laura confirmed, sighing heavily as she waited for the cylon's response.

The chains around her ankles clanked as she placed her feet on the ground, the metal bar keeping them apart. "I've been programmed never to think about them" Caprica revealed, knowing that defying her programming could have serious consequences. "Well, your program isn't working because you're thinking about them now" Laura argued, knowing that discovering the identities of the final five, could help her protect Pandora from whatever was at the other end of the doors of the Opera House.

"I try not to" The cylon admitted, knowing that she had feared that she could suffer the same fate as D'Anna. "Trying not to is still thinking about them - how to you rationalise that?" Laura asked, suspecting that Caprica was her only hope of discovering anything about the infamous 'final five'.

A pregnant pause came over them, Caprica's metal chains clicking against each other as she stood up from the bed, cautiously stepping towards the President as the door of her prison was forced open by a guard, who trained his riffle on her while he stepped in front of Laura. "Alright...back off, don't leave, back off" She warned him, putting her hand out towards him to act as the peacekeeper between the Galactica guard and the cylon prisoner.

Caprica leaned forward, her voice dropping to a whisper as though she was about to impose on Laura the greatest secret of her race. "The five are near" She revealed, causing Laura to squint her eyes as her shoulders tensed upwards. "What?" Laura's voice was laced in shock; if they were close, then there was no doubt that they were in the fleet, perhaps even in Galactica itself.

"I can feel them" The blonde cylon affirmed, backing up her claim as she raised her hands forward, as though trying to reach towards her heart.

Shaking her head, Laura moved towards the grey metal walls that acted as a solitary prison for the cylon, leaning her back against it as she turned her attention to the cylon. "Why is Pandora in the visions?" She asked, her heart bounding in her chest as she impatiently waited the cylon's answer.

Caprica shook her head, sitting herself down onto the bed, dropping her handcuffed wrists onto her lap as she shut her eyes for a moment. "I feel like I know her - that _another me_ knew her - but I can't access the memories, not from here anyway" Caprica began, pursing her lips as she tried to understand the situation. "I don't understand why she's in them. Hera is half cylon, but Pandora...?" She raised her eyes towards the President, seeing the fear written across the mother's face. Laura shook her head, stopping the cylon from continuing on her path. Laura couldn't afford to even fantom the idea that Pandora was in any way connected to the cylons; yet she knew one of the six models.

"All I know is that I had to protect her" Caprica concluded, earning a brief nod from Laura as the woman left the room, letting the door slam shut behind her. She could have swore that she had seen the tears glaze over Laura's eyes as she left, refusing to entertain the reality in front of her.

* * *

**_Later that evening_ **

* * *

For once, Laura was following Cottle's advice.

When she returned to their quarters, she had been quick to discard her heels and blazer, lying herself down on the rack next to Pandora for a well earned nap, letting the child sleep to recover from her emotional roller coaster than had courtesy of one Kara Thrace.

Hearing the hatch creak open, Laura awoke from her peaceful slumber, listening to the footsteps that patted across the room. Bill wasn't meant to be home for a few more hours at least, perhaps Saul had compiled him to leave work behind for a night. Lifting the cold wet cloth off her forehead, she slipped her shoulder out from under Pandora's head and

Instead of being greeted by the welcoming face of her husband; she was met by the barrel of a gun.

" _Kara"_ She breathed, terror flashing before her eyes as Pandora awoke from her sleep, mumbling to herself. Kara's finger hovered over the trigger and Laura silently wondered if the woman would have it in her to shot both her and Pandora.


	19. Six of One

"Kara" Laura breathed, terror flashing before her eyes as Pandora awoke from her sleep, mumbling to herself. Kara's finger hovered over the trigger and Laura silently wondered if the woman would have it in her to shot both herself and her child.

"Starbuck's got the President" Saul announced over the intercom, his words brought a flash of fear to Bill's eyes. There was no telling what the woman would do in her current mental state, and matters were only made worse by Laura's current disposition and the presence of Pandora as a hostage. He ordered Gaeta to take over his post before he left the room with a new found sense of urgency and a desperate need to reach his family.

There was no telling what Kara was capable of; especially with his wife and child completely unarmed.

Laura felt Pandora's fingers clutch the back of her shirt. Her daughter's tears turned into soft whimpers as she hid behind her mother, fearful of the woman whom she had once called her sister. Reaching her hand back, she held onto the child's hand. Pandora was traumatised enough without having to witness her 'sister' holding her mother hostage.

"Move" Kara ordered, the barrel of her gun still pointed towards Laura, her determination never faltering.

Silence filled the room as Laura contemplated her next move; she had to stay between Pandora and Kara, without scaring the child anymore than necessary. "Move!" Kara repeated, irritated by the woman's lack of ability to follow such a simple instruction. She knew she didn't have long with the President and she couldn't afford to waste time.

Laura stepped forward slowly, her hand still clutching Pandora's as she help the child down from the bed, keeping herself between Pandora and Kara as she followed Kara's lead. "Move, come on!" Kara insisted as Laura paused momentarily to bring Pandora in front of her, keeping as much distance between her daughter and the gun wilding pilot as possible.

"Mama, I'm scared" Pandora whispered as she noticed her mother's heavy breathing and the tears that had pierced the sides of the woman's eyes. "I know, my love" Laura replied in a gentle whisper, trying to keep her breathing under control as she walked slowly. Kara must have at least injured her guard to have gained access to their quarters, and if she was willing to do that, then Laura had no doubt in her mind that the pilot could easily pull the trigger if she didn't cooperate.

"Over by the couch, now!" Kara ordered, her gun levelled with the President's neck as she moved to shut the hatch door, locking it while she kept her eyes focused on the woman before her.

As she came to a stop in front of the couch, Laura tried to get Pandora to sit, but the child instead wrapped her arms protectively around her mother's legs, her head rested against Laura's thigh as tears began to roll down her eyes.

"I want to hate you so much" Kara revealed, contempt laced her voice as she walked towards the woman. Laura took a step back, her hand clutched Pandora to her side in a bid to keep her out of the line of fire. "So much" She repeated, as though needing to emphasis to the President that her threat was real.

"You had a vision, remember?" Kara taunted, her eyes narrowing. "The arrow, the temple - I went down to that planet with you and it was a fraking toaster party. A lot of good people died, remember?" She asked as she blinked her eyes to hide her tears. Too many good people were dead because of Laura's visions; they had sacrificed themselves in belief of the prophecy and the visions of their President. "Yes I do" Laura assure her with a nod of her head, uncomfortable at the closeness between Kara and her child; she was close enough to hear Kara's breathing, to see the determination in her eyes.

"I trusted you," Kara continued "on a vision, that's it. A vision. I saw Earth, I saw it with my own eye and its calling me back. We're going the wrong way!" She insisted, unable to understand how the entire fleet could be following a path seen in a vision, when she had seen Earth with her own eyes and even Adama didn't believe her. "Why can't you trust me?" She asked, her gun lowered to her side.

She had thought their relationship was stronger than this.

For a brief shining moment, she had thought that she had found herself a family - a dysfunctional family, but a family none the less.

Now, they all thought she was a cylon.

Kara loaded the gun before flipping it in her hands, the barrel pointed towards her chest as she offered it outstretched to Laura. "Shoot me" She proposed, a sense of defeat filled her soul as she dropped her shoulders.

She couldn't fight with Laura anymore.

"If you think I'm a cylon, shoot me!" Kara's harsh words caused Laura to jump slightly and made Pandora clutch onto her mother's blouse for dear life. "If you think I'm a cylon, then I'm your enemy" Kara shook the gun in her hands, still offering it to Laura as she spoke, pushing Laura to the very end of her limit. "Shoot your enemy!" She insisted, knowing somewhere deep down, that only death could stop the Earth's call for her to return, yet only Laura could cement her death in this moment.

Laura's eyes remained focused on Kara, ignoring the existence of the gun. Bill would never forgive her if she shot Kara, but the woman had the nerve to point a gun at her in the presence of their daughter. Simply claiming that she wasn't a cylon did not make her a perfect human.

Cylons were psychopathic liars.

"Take it!" Kara cried as she slammed the gun down onto the coffee table that sat between their legs. She knew the other woman couldn't do it. She wouldn't have the nerve to pull the trigger in front of Pandora, nor would she want to face the consequences from her husband.

Laura didn't have the guts to shoot her.

"I'm no more a cylon that you are," Kara assured her "and you know it" She added, knowing that she was walking a thin line between making her point and giving Laura the ammunition she needed to pull the trigger.

"I wish I did" Laura confessed regretfully while one hand pushed Pandora down onto the sofa behind them as she watched Kara turn back to face her. "I've put my life on the line for this fraking ship. I have ate, slept and fought next to the people I love, I have pissed off my friends" Kara began, sure that in her heart there was no way that she could be a cylon; she was as much of a human as any of the Adama family. "I have broken more rules than I followed, I fraked up okay!" She cried, her emotions overriding everything else as she tried to persuade Roslin that she was truly a human.

"But that's all that I have. Those people are my family, and none of us belong here" Kara spat in disgust, her face curling up as she looked away from the President. None of them belonged on a ship, running for their lives from the colons with all their hope in an ancient prophecy of a dying leader who would guide the way to Earth.

"Shoot me, if I'm a cylon, shoot me!" Kara insisted once again, her voice raised as she pushed her hands outwards before hitting them against her chest.

In that moment, there was no doubt in Laura's mind that Kara was a cylon.

Kara would only have provoked her to pull the trigger if she was certain of being resurrected.

"They made you perfect, didn't they?" Laura mumbled as she bent down to scoop the gun up, her finger already on the trigger as she pointed it towards Kara, her vision blurred as the gun let out a shot before she could even realise what she had done.

"Mama!" Pandora cried, jumping off the sofa to wrap her arms around her mother's legs fearfully, her eyes widened in terror as they followed the bullet as it cut through the air.

The bullet had lodged itself in the photo over Kara's shoulder; in Laura and Bill's wedding photo.

When the hatch door was flung open, Laura was still holding the gun, still pointing it towards Kara.

It was as though a bomb had went off.

The room filled with guards, two standing watch at the two as the Captain moved further into the room, her gun held in the ready position as she advanced towards the woman who had narrowly missed the death reaper's call. "Down on the floor, down on the floor now!" The female guard shouted as two more stepped forward to tackle Kara to the ground, each taking hold of her arm.

"Let go of me! Get off me!" Kara protested as she tried to break free of the guards hold. "What are you doing? I'm not a cylon!" She shouted while she shook her shoulders in a bid to set herself free.

Overcome by the realisation of her actions, Laura dazed out until Saul appeared at her side, taking the gun from her hand as Pandora looked up fearfully at her mother, silent in her shock. "Madam President" His words brought her back to reality, and she wrapped her arm around Pandora as she caught sight of Bill appearing through the hatch.

"What the frak is going on here?" He barked, anger filled his voice as he glared down at Kara as the guards attempted to keep her on the ground. He addressed Saul before he moved towards Laura, his hand coming to rest on her arm. "Are you okay?" He asked, his free hand moved to touch Pandora's hair as the child sobbed quietly into her mother's legs.

Kara had terrified his daughter to death.

As the guards forced Kara to her feet, her heavy breathing echoed around the room as she continued to struggle against her cuffs while they were locked by the guards. Bill took a step closer to his wife, acting as a human shield to protect her against the disillusioned pilot.

"Listen to me please" Kara pleaded, her voice as low as a child's as she focused her eyes on Laura, who simply gathered Pandora up into her arms as she ignored the desperate pleas of the pilot in front of her. "I'm losing it" She revealed, as though the loss of feeling was like a knife embedded in her heart, being twisted deeper with every jump they made away from Earth. "The ringing, the way to Earth" She continued speaking, well aware that the Admiral's glare was enough to bring a weaker man to his knees with fear, while Laura buried her head in her daughter's shoulder, refusing to acknowledge the woman who had held them hostage. "It's getting weaker, don't you understand?" She asked, losing hope that they would ever find their way to Earth.

Roslin was her best shot; now she had no hope.

"Don't any of you understand?" Kara asked, turning to look at the others in the room. Both Saul and Helo looked at her as though she belonged in an asylum. "It was so clear, like it was coming from the next room" As she spoke, she could feel their looks of pity. They thought she was crazy. Kara shook her head as the tears began to overflow, "Stop looking at me like that!" She begged, leaning forward as she glanced down at the ground. She wasn't crazy - and she most certainly was not a cylon. "I can feel it slipping away. Even without jumping, even as with move. It's half of what it was when I got here" She explained, a sense of urgency in her voice as she could feel the pull of the Earth slipping away from her; the further they travelled, the harder it would be for her to guide them back. "if we keep jumping, it'll be gone, and we'll never find it again" Kara breathed, her body going limp as she began to give up hope of ever returning to the planet she was sure had been Earth.

"I thought that's what we wanted, a way to Earth" Kara said quietly, her words directed at Bill as the man shook his head; he had promised to take the survivors of the human race to the safe haven of Earth - yet here he was ignoring the truth.

Kara had threatened the lives of both his wife and daughter; he couldn't trust her anymore. He kept his arm around Laura's waist while he rested his hand on Pandora's back, the child's whimpers and sobs felt like a knife through his heart. A father was meant to protect his child, but he hadn't been able to protect Pandora against the chaos of Kara's return. "Do you hear me?" Kara pleaded for some sort of a response from the man, bidding for his attention.

"Get her out of here" Saul ordered, aware that tensions were too high in the room for any negotiation between the two parties. "Yes Sir" The guards replied as the two at Kara's side began to lead her from the room, pulling her away as Kara fought against them, shouting back at Laura. "You better work on your aim, because I'm not going to stop. You're gonna have to kill me! One more jump and it'll be gone, Admiral!" Kara cried as the guards dragged her out of the room, eventually lifting her from her feet to carry her down the hallway.

Laura wrapped her arms around her daughters waist as she rested her head down on Bill's shoulder, letting her husband hold them against his chest. She knew he had to be sure they were okay. "Papa!" Pandora cried, unable to understand what she had just witnessed. Why had Kara, the bubbly bright Kara, pointed a gun at them? Kara was meant to be her family - and family certainly didn't threaten each other. "I know, Pandy" He acknowledged, taking his daughter out of his wife's arms, holding her for a moment before he carried her towards the rack. Bill prayed to the Lord of Kobol that his daughter's dreams wouldn't be haunted by visions of the new Kara, who was only a flicker of the woman she had once been.

"Don't worry about it, nothing is going to happen, I promise" He assured her, listening as the hatch door was locked behind the guards, two of whom no doubt stayed behind to keep vigil over the trio.

Bill couldn't bring himself to contemplate what might have happened if the bullet had hit Kara - or worse yet, if Kara had of been the one to pull the trigger.

It took every ounce of Bill's self control to stop him from bashing the living day lights out of Kara - or from taking a leaf out of his wife's book and throwing her out the nearest airlock. She had put a gun in front of his wife and child. She had threatened his sick wife and scared the life out of his daughter. Kara had played with fire and most certainly gotten burned.

He had loved Kara like a daughter, and she had betrayed that trust.

He shut the door behind him as he entered the cell, his footsteps echoing around the metal bars as he walked toward Kara. "What were you doing? What were you thinking?" He asked, invading Kara's personal space as he brought his face close enough to hers that he could see the leftover tears that had glazed over her eyes. What was she thinking when she took Laura and Pandora hostage?

"What happened to you?" He asked, feeling his anger boiling in his veins as he resisted the urge to reach out and straggle her. The distraught woman before him was not the same Kara Thrace that had once stood before him - brave and valiant in her search for their new home, loyal and true to her Admiral and President. This woman was not his Kara.

"I saw Earth" She reminded him, her lips trembling as she spoke, her heart breaking over the fact that she had already lost the man she considered to be her father figure. "The shape of it, the smell of it, the feel of it on my skin and in my pores and I swear to you it was like I'd been there before," She promised him, shaking her head as fresh tears began to flood her eyes. "Like I never left" Kara added as an afterthought.

Bill looked the young woman straight in the eyes, Laura's earlier warning ringing in his ears. If Kara was a cylon, then she was the perfect weapon against him. She had used her desire to find Earth as a justification for putting both Laura and Pandora in front of the barrel of a gun.

"You're too stupid to figure out that you've just screwed over the one ally you had" He said defiantly, doubting he could ever forgive her for what she had put his family through. For a moment, when he heard the boom of the bullet and his daughter's cry; he had thought Laura had been shot and for a moment, his world had went completely black. He never wanted to be in that position again.

"You didn't have the guts to hold on" He uttered in a threatening tone. Taking a step forward, his voice lowered "Tell me, who's going to help you now?" Bill asked, wondering how his relationship with the woman had managed to turn on its head within such a short space of time. They had thought she was dead. His family had mourned her supposed death - now, she was back and Bill momentarily wondered if she would have been better off dead.

Silence fell between them as Kara took a step back, her breathing laboured as she shook her head. "Yeah, frak me, it sure as hell isn't going to be you. You've got to remind yourself that you're somebody else," She started, her blood boiled at Bill's betrayal.

Did she mean that little to him that he could just lock her away in a cell as though she was a cylon? Had she went from being his substitute daughter to his enemy?

"You're the President's wet nurse" She retaliated, her voice laced with hatred and mixed with contempt for the man before her. He had hurt her with his betrayal, and she was fighting back the only way she knew how.

Laura didn't have the guts to face the truth, to face the reality that it had been Kara who had found Earth, and not herself. Bill didn't have the guts to go against his wife. What authority did they have to tell her that she didn't have 'the guts to hold one'? An uncomfortable pause fell between them once more before Kara curled her lip, "You're the one who doesn't have the guts" She returned his insult, her eyes filled with unsheathed tears.

Their family had fallen apart.

In one swift movement, Bill's hand wrapped around Kara's neck and sent her to the floor, her back crashed against the floor of the cell as he leaned down over her, his hand still clasped at her neck. Kara had crossed the line; Laura was his wife and Pandora's mother, now Kara was nothing more than his pilot.

"Nice to know you still care, Admiral" Kara choked, her hand clasped over his wrist as she tried to lift his hand off her neck. "You act like I'm supposed to care about you. You put my wife and child in front of the barrel of your gun, and you still expect me to care about you!" Bill growled before he abruptly let go of her neck, letting her head bounce back on the floor as he stood up, ignoring her cries of angst as he headed out of the cell, slamming the door behind him.

Bill wondered if the Lords of Kobol had taken him as their play thing.

His wife's cancer had returned.

His daughter was the focus of a vision, and possibly a cylon.

The woman he once loved like a daughter had held his wife and child hostage.

His son was retiring from being a pilot.

Bill drowned the remainder of his whiskey before he slammed the glass down on the bar. "You're enjoying that more than usual" Laura remarked, her paperwork no longer relevant as she turned to look back at her husband with a look of disapproval. "Hair of the dog, Lee's party" He explained as he placed the lid back onto the glass container while he brought the freshly poured liquid to his lips. Laura snorted at his reply, his fingertips pressed against her temples as she tried to glance over her paperwork. "What do we do? Put her on trial? Find Romo Lampkin? Take a show of hands?" Laura questioned, aware that they would have to make a decision about Kara as soon as possible. The pilot had taken the President and her child hostage, it wasn't a crime that could go unpunished. Bill sighed heavily as he shook his head, "I don't know" He admitted, knowing that if it had of been anyone else other than Kara, they would have already been locked up in the brig for life or thrown out the airlock.

"Follow her into an ambush?" Laura offered, confident that they couldn't take any of Kara's story as being the truth. The young woman had lost her mind; driven crazy by her belief that she had found Earth. Laura refused to let anyone, not even Kara, take them off their course to Earth. "She is driven" Bill reminded his wife, earning a "Yeah" in agreement. As her husband made his way towards his desk at the other side of the room, unsteady on his feet from the amount of alchol he had consumed, Laura rolled her eyes to the highest heavens as she threw her pen down onto her bundle of papers.

They couldn't carry on like this.

"You gonna keep waltzing, or are you gonna sit down and talk?" She snapped, her words stopped Bill in his tracks. "What's going on? Sit" Laura commanded, closing over her files as she slipped her glasses off her nose, her fingertips briefly touched her temples as Bill sat himself down on the chair at the side of her desk, his whiskey glass still in hand. "What if she's telling the truth?" Bill asked, finally attempting out loud what had been on his mind from the mind the pilot had returned to the ship with her story of finding Earth. Kara had never been wrong before. He took a long sip of his drink, gathering up some Dutch courage, before he continued.

"She was supposed to die out there" He reminded them both, the recording of her ship shattering into a million pieces still played over in his mind time and time again like a broken record. "She didn't, I can't explain it. What if she was meant to help us? And this was a..." Bill stopped in his tracks, unable to bring himself to consider the idea of Kara's return from the dead as being a miracle. Laura raised her eyebrow as she leaned forward, "A what? A miracle?" She finished, her eyes watching her husband as he raised his head to look at her. "Is that what you want to call this? Go ahead, say it" Laura coaxed, refusing to believe that the man before her would consider Kara's apparent resurrection and discovery of Earth as being a miracle, a sign from the Lords of Kobol themselves. "Grab your piece of the golden arrow. I want to hear Admiral atheist say that a miracle happened" she taunted, remembering how he refused to believe in her visions at the start, now here he was claiming that Kara's return was some sort of a miracle.

"You shot at her and missed at close range" Bill reminded her, his elbow pressed against the desk as his fingers clasped around his whiskey glass. He doubted that Laura had intended to kill the woman why she let the bullet out of its barrel. "Doloxan fraks with your aim" Laura explained, her arms folded defensively against her chest. "So does doubt" Bill disagreed, confident that if Laura had of wanted to kill Kara, then she would have done it. She would have done it to protect Pandora; and everyone else on the ship.

As Bill drowned what was left of his whiskey, Laura narrowed her eyes in disapproval at her husband. "I pulled the trigger and I'd do it again" She assured him "She put her life in front of a bullet as if it had no meaning" It was perhaps that which had shocked Laura the most. Her life meant everything to her. If her cancer stole that from her, then she would miss any chance of seeing Pandora grow up, her search for Earth would bear no fruit and her time with Bill would be cut inhumanely short. "You drop an egg, you reach for another" She concluded, keeping her voice low for fear of waking the sleeping child in the next room.

"Maybe convincing you meant more to her than her own life" Bill offered, his mind filled with possibilities as he took the side of his pilot, of the woman he had once considered to be like a daughter to him. "Is that your miracle? You want to talk about miracles?" Laura asked in disbelief, unable to grasp the fact that they were having this discussion.

"On the very same day that a very pale doctor informed me that I had terminal cancer, most of humanity was annihilated, and I survived. And by some mathematical absurdity, I became President. And then my cancer disappeared long enough for us to find a way to Earth". Her thoughts floated back to the girl who had unexpectedly entered their lives and changed them for the better. "And by some twist of fate, we have a daughter who needs us. We have a precious little girl who has no one in this universe except for me and you. You can call it whatever you want. And now, I'm dying" She finished, hoping that Bill would come to accept the fact that her cancer had returned and that there was a possibility that she wouldn't make it to Earth, and that Bill would be alone with Pandora.

"Don't talk that way" Bill insisted, refusing to believe that the illness would claim Laura's life. They had beaten it once before, they could do it again. "Bill, you gotta face this" Laura said quietly, her voice dropping to a whisper as a tears formed in the corner of her eyes. "My life is coming to an end soon enough, and I am not going to apologise to you for not trusting her" As a mother, Laura felt a duty to ensure that no matter what, Pandora got to Earth. That she got the normal childhood that Laura had always hoped that any child of hers would have. "And I am not, I am not going to trust her with the fate of this fleet" Over the last few weeks, the crew of Galactica had became her family, and she owed it to them to ensure they stayed on course.

Shaking her head, Laura continued speaking, "You are so buckled up inside" She sighed, "You can't take any more loss. Your son's leaving, this," Laura nodded down to the bandages wrapped around her wrist from her latest doloxan treatment, "me. Pandora. I know it". Laura admitted, finally voicing her fears.

Out of all of them, Bill had the heaviest of crosses to carry.

"No one's going anywhere" Bill proclaimed, as though his words could stop fate and destiny from ever happening. His son wouldn't leave the ship, Pandora wouldn't fall victim to Laura's vision, and his wife wouldn't die at the hands of her cancer.

Laura glanced away as the tears grew over her eyes. Bill had to accept reality. "Okay" She laughed nervously, her lips shaking as she turned back to her husband as the tears began to roll down her cheeks. "Here's the truth. This is what's going on. You want to believe Kara" She began, suspecting that Bill's loyalty to the young woman had returned once more. "You would rather be wrong about her and face your own demise than risk losing her again" She prompted, being able to read her husband like an open book. Kara would always be like a daughter to him, no matter what happened.

Bill had lost enough people in his life, not least of all one of his children. He wouldn't allow himself to lose anyone else from his family.

Not Lee.

Not Pandora.

Not Kara.

Certainly not Laura.

"You can stay in the room, but get out of my head" Bill sneered as he stood from his seat, clasping the whiskey bottle by the neck as he filled his glass up once again. "You're so afraid to live alone" Laura said sadly, aware that she herself could be leaving him soon - he didn't deserve to lose anyone else.

"And you're afraid to die that way. You're afraid that you might not be the dying leader that you thought you were, or that your death may be as meaningless as everyone else's." At his words Laura could feel the tears piercing against her eyes, though she refused to let them fall. Placing her glasses back on her nose, she opened her folder as she tried to focus on her paperwork.

Looking down, Laura's lips trembled in fear as she felt the strands of hair fall out of her hair like brittle straw. The more she ran her fingers through her once luxurious curls, the more strands of hair came out, until her fists were filled with thick strands of auburn curls. She hadn't lost her hair last time; it was one of the reasons why she was able to keep her sickness hidden for so long - there hadn't been many physical signs. Now, what was she supposed to do? Pandora knew she was sick, but the child didn't know the true extent of her illness. How was she supposed to explain to the girl that she might not be around to watch her grow up?

How could she prepare her husband and daughter for the fact that she could die before they found Earth?

Tears glazed over her eyes and blinded her vision. Taking off her glasses, she abandoned them on the table. Her shoulders shook as she sobbed, her head buried in her arms as she rested them on the table.

Appearing around the corner, Pandora waited until she heard the door slap shut behind her father before she moved away from the shadows. She had been sleeping in the bunk when her father's return woke her up. She would have greeted him right away, until the pair of them started to argue and she knew better than to interrupt them.

"Mama?" Pandora asked, having heard the woman's tears from her hiding place in the kitchen. Her plush elephant was pressed tightly against her chest as she walked towards Laura, wrapping her free hand around the woman's arm. Laura sniffled as she lifted her head to face the girl, trying to blink away her tears before Pandora reached out to place her small hands against her cheeks, using her thumbs to wipe away the tears that had scared her cheek.

"Papa didn't mean what he said Mama, I know he didn't. He's just sad about Kara, that's all" Pandora promised with such innocence that it broke Laura's heart in two. She had no idea what must have been going through her daughter's head. First Kara supposedly dead, then she had gotten sick and within a day Kara was back and holding them both at gun point. She shouldn't have been so hard on Bill. It couldn't be easy for him, "I know, little one" Laura sighed as she dropped a kiss on the girl's forehead, helping her to get up onto her knee.

Pandora wrapped her arms around Laura's neck and smiled at the woman sadly. "Let's get you ready to go and see Cottle" Laura suggested, the earlier drama of the day had almost made her forget about their appointment with Cottle - almost. They had submitted DNA samples for Cottle to test and compare with both Hera and Sharon's.

Today was a day that the history books had taught Lauren were better spent in bed, but this had to be done.

Deep down, Laura feared that her worst nightmare was about to come true.

"Can I wear the red dress?" Pandora called as she moved off her mother's lap and headed towards the small drawer that housed her collection of clothing. Fixing her hair, Laura stood from her seat and followed Pandora. "You can wear whatever you want" She told the girl, glad that her young age made her blissfully ignorant of the events to come.

No matter what happened today, everything would stay the same between them.

No matter what.

Laura wasn't overly confident that Bill would show up at all. Not after he stormed out of their quarters with yet another drink in his hand.

"Where's your father at today?" Cottle asked as he helped Pandora up onto the bed while shooting a look over his shoulder at Laura. Bill never missed any of Laura's hospital appointments, and he doubted the man would have missed something as important as the results of Pandora's tests. Laura shook her head defensively and Cottle was about to probe the subject a little more before the curtain around the bed was opened and Bill appeared, clearly out of breath as he placed his hand on his chest. "Did you run the whole way here?" Cottle asked, shaking his head as he put out his cigarette. Laura looked up from her spot on the bed to flash her husband a weak smile; a silent reassurance that she hadn't taken his words to heart. This wasn't easy on any of them - not least of all Bill.

It had been the liquor talking. He hadn't meant any of what he said.

He came to a stop at Laura's side and slowly placed his hand on her shoulder, thankful that she didn't flinch away from his touch.

"I've got the results" Cottle began as there was no point beating around the bush, especially when his patient was the child of the President of the Twelve Colonies and the Admiral of the Colonial Fleet. His hands clenched onto the test results, unsure how the relatively new parents would take the news about their daughter. "It's positive" He confirmed, watching as Laura's eyes widened while Bill's grip of the child tightened. No one could know, only the Lords of Kobol knew what could happen if this information got out.

Laura had never previously given much thought to the probabilities of Pandora being a cylon. The thought had never once crossed her mind until the visions began; until the dreaded visions of the Opera House haunted her.

She swallowed and forced herself to turn away.

"Pandora's a cylon" She repeated, as though searching for some clarity in the darkness of the truth. Pandora, their little girl, was a cylon.

"What does that mean, Mama?" Pandora asked bewildered as her eyes darted between Laura and Bill. All she knew was that being a cylon wasn't a good thing, after all, they had thought Kara was one.

"Part cylon" Cottle corrected, the new information caused both of the diplomats before him to widen their eyes in shock. "What?" Bill questioned as he stepped forward to take the results out of Cottle's hand, attempting to make some sense of the numbers before him, "Pandora is only part cylon; she's a human cylon hybrid, just like Hera" Cottle explained, baffled as to how Pandora had inherited the same genetic makeup as Hera - part cylon and part human, yet there was something different about her. Something unnatural.

Bill doubted that he had anymore of a heart to be broken.

His family had been through the wars.

Baltar's trial, Laura's cancer, Kara's disappearance and now this.

"How is that possible? We thought Hera was the only one like that" Laura thought aloud once she had regained the ability to speak. Cottle shook his head in defeat. "I can run more tests, see what I can find, there is differences though between her blood and that of Hera's - it's unnatural somehow." Cottle said, his voice powered as he stepped towards the family, aware that almost anyone could enter the medical area, which left them open to someone stumbling across their sensitive conversation. Bill nodded his head in agreement as he lifted Pandora out of Laura's arms, it was hours after the girl's bedtime. "We'll bring her down tomorrow" He decided, respectfully nodding his head at the other man who was already lighting up another cigarette. Cottle was the keeper of the greatest secret in the fleet.

The short journey back to their quarters was a silent one.

Laura's head was filled with a million questions; not least of all about the Six who had supposedly left Pandora in Colonial One during the exodus from New Caprica. Had Pandora been left with them for protection - to save her from the cylons?

As they entered the quarters, Bill placed Pandora down into her cot before going back to lock the door. Laura sat herself down on the ground beside Pandora's cot that sat around the corner from their rack at the back of the room, furthest from the door.

"Am I bad?" Pandora asked worriedly as her mother tucked her into bed in her cot. "Of course not, little one" Laura assured her, wishing that she had decided against bringing the girl with her to get the results. "You're not going to her rid of me are you? I've never had a mommy or daddy before" Pandora choked, her lips trembling as her eyes filled with puddles of tears. All she knew was that the cylons were their enemy, that her father was fighting against them. Now she was one.

Laura felt her heart break as she shook her head, reaching out to gather the girl into her arms. She rocked the girl in her arms, from side to side, as she hummed softly to her, waiting until the girl's sobs died down to a whimper before sleep claimed her as a willing victim.

"It explains the visions" Bill announced as he helped Laura up once she had tucked the child into bed.

Did the cylons want Pandora the same way they wanted Hera?

Were they searching for her?

Did they know she was here?

"She's innocent, Bill. We both agreed that no matter what, she's our daughter" Laura reminded him, shaking her head as she wrapped her arms around her waist, still refusing to believe the results of Pandora's tests.

"No matter what" He agreed as his eyes fell on the sleeping child, watching as her chest rises and fell. Even if Pandora was part cylon, she was a human girl - just like Hera.


End file.
